LM Confidential

..
L M Confidential
ittle
AUGUST 2015
anila
See Jericho
Rosales at
TASTE OF MANILA 2015
MILTON FILIPINO PICNIC DAY
Filipinos in Milton enjoy the festivities on the 3rd annversary of the
festival. PHOTO BY NOLI GUMAPAC
BIGGER & BETTER
AUGUST 22-23, 2015
BATHURST STREET AND WILSON AVENUE
PH failed
to stamp
out human
trafficking
Public Officials are
complicit in the human
trafficking operations
Summer
of 2015
Charry Alviz looks happy as she receives her bag of school supplies at San Juan
Elementary School in Pampanga, courtesy of Fina Joven of Annset Travel and Tours.
AUGUST 2015
L. M. Confidential
The Philippines has not done enough to
stamp out human trafficking, according to the 2015 Trafficking in Persons
(TIP) Report released by the United
States.
The report placed the Philippines at
Tier 2 in its three-tier ranking system,
which means that the country has yet
to fully comply with the Trafficking
and Violence Protection Act (TVPA)
of 2000.
The TIP report provides the most
comprehensive information on government efforts around the world to
combat modern slavery.
“In this latest report, the State Department determined that the Philippines made significant efforts to combat
human trafficking; however, the country
has not yet fully complied with the
minimum standards for the elimination of trafficking,” the US Embassy in
Manila said.
The report released by Secretary of
State John Kerry identified the Philippines as a “source country,” and to a
much lesser extent, “a destination and
transit country for men, women and
children subjected to sex trafficking and
forced labor.”
An estimated 10 million Filipinos
work abroad, and many are subjected
to sex trafficking, forced labor and debt
bondage in the fishing, construction,
education, nursing, shipping, agricultural industries and hospital-related
jobs throughout the Middle East, Asia,
Europe and North America, the report
said.
Aside from recruitment agencies that
use illegal practices to persuade Filipinos to work abroad, traffickers also use
email, social media, as well as student,
intern and exchange program visas “to
circumvent the Philippine government
HUMAN TRAFFICKING
continued on page 18
1
2
L. M. Confidential
AUGUST 2015
Philippines defense spending
increase because of China
MANILA - The Philippines plans to
ramp up military spending over the next
13 years, earmarking more than $20
billion to modernize its forces in the
face of Beijing’s maritime ambitions in
the disputed South China Sea, a top Air
Force official told Reuters.
Major-General Raul del Rosario,
military chief of plans, said the
blueprint includes installing radars and
sensors, and buying equipment such
Scandal will affect
‘INC’ movie
Some folks are wondering how the
scandalous power struggle and family
feud currently rocking the Iglesia ni Cristo
sect will affect the movie “Sugo, The Last
Messenger”, an ambitious project of the
INC which is about the life story of their
founding father Felix Manalo, played by
Dennis Trillo.
AUGUST 2015
as submarines, frigates, fighters,
surveillance planes and missile
systems.
“By the time, we complete this
plan, we will have complete coverage
of the South China Sea,” said del
Rosario, a former fighter pilot,
showing the military’s detailed plan
that was approved.
“We will have 24/7 awareness of
what is happening in the disputed
area and we’ll be able to respond
quicker to any contingency in our
own exclusive economic zone.”
He said the ambitious plan was
initiated in 2013, but top brass had only
approved overall spending of 998 billion
pesos ($22.11 billion).
Del Rosario said 83 billion pesos had
been earmarked for the first five years,
DEFENSE SPENDING
continued on page 22
It was shot in 58 shooting days by
Director Joel Lamangan with an unlimited
budget.
Incidentally, whatever happened to the
arch enemy of the INC, Eli Soriano of Ang
Dating Daan? He and the INC spokesmen
used to trade barbs on TV as they try to
prove which one is the better sect: Dating
Daan or the INC’s Tamang Daan? We’re
sure Mr. Soriano will have a lot to say
about this controversial fracas that the
INC is now going through.
Miriam to run for President?
MANILA - Elated by results of a recent
survey, her cancer kept at bay, the feisty
senator appears
keen on joining the
presidential race
Senator Miriam
Defensor-Santiago’s
interest in the
presidency has been
rekindled by a survey
which placed her in
the top three choices for the next president.
and she was “elated and gratified” by a
special visit and consultation with one of
the world’s leading lung cancer specialists
who found her lung cancer “arrested.”
Santiago said that she was “happily
surprised” by the publication in a news
website of a survey by Publicus Asia listing
presidentiables in the following order of
voter preference for the 2016 presidential
elections: Sen. Grace Poe, Sen. Miriam
Defensor-Santiago, Vice President Jejomar
Binay, Sen. Francis Escudero, Davao Mayor
Rodolfo Duterte, and Interior and Local
Government Secretary Mar Roxas.
“To remain in the consciousness of
voters despite an absence of over a year is
certainly a challenge, including remaining
in public service. And I consider it in that
light,” said Santiago.
All of the above candidates are active
in government service except for Santiago,
who is on qualified medical leave from the
Senate due to lung cancer. This means
that she is allowed to be absent because
of her cancer, but at the same time, she is
also allowed to participate, if necessary, in
certain official Senate activities.
Interest in Santiago’s health was
aroused when supporters posted on her
Facebook page a video of Santiago from
L. M. Confidential
the back. At present, the senator exercises
by walking some two kilometers every day.
Santiago has been under treatment by
her correspondent doctor, Dr. Mark Kris,
a distinguished medical oncologist who
serves as chief of the Thoracic Oncology
Service at Memorial Sloan Kettering
Cancer Center in New York. She noted
that Kris holds the Joy Ruane Chair at
the same Center. He is also a professor of
medicine at Weill Cornell Medical College
specializing in lung cancer.
She also said that Sloan Kettering is
the world’s oldest and largest private cancer
center and in 2014-2015, it was ranked the
number one hospital for cancer care in the
United States.
Kris had a consultation with Santiago
last July 17 together with her team of local
doctors consisting of Dr. Esperanza Cabral,
cardiologist; Dr. Gary Lorenzo, oncologist;
and Dr. Ruth Divinagracia, pulmonologist.
The team, together with Kris,
examined at the St. Luke’s Global
City Medical Center all the PET
(Positron Emission Tomography) and
CT (Computed Tomography) Scans of
Santiago which Kris had already fully
studied in his New York clinic.
Kris said that although no patient can
be pronounced cured of cancer, Santiago,
while following his medical prescriptions,
has been able to control the cancer,
meaning that cancer growth in her left lung
has been arrested.
At present, Santiago occasionally
participates in Senate work, but mostly
remains in her La Vista house, where she
has produced two best selling joke books
and the latest 2015 editions of over two
dozen law books.
3
What The F
ACT?
BY JOSE BAKING
AFFAIR WEBSITE
Hackers break in.
What the Philippines
brings to casinos
worldwide
Aruze’s Batangas plant supplies almost 10% of slot
machines worldwide
AshleyMadison.com, the website with the slogan “Life is short. Have
an affair,” has been hacked. The website, which specializes in giving
married people in 48 countries an outlet to cheat has been hacked by the
Impact Team, a hacker group. The IT claims to have private information
including names, nude photos and credit card data. Imagine if your
spouse found out that you are having an affair with the partner of your
brother, sister...etc...Que horror. It just goes to show you that free sex is
not free. Wait a minute. If this becomes a teleserye, I demand a royalty
from Rosary Escano of TFC.
But first, is there a Filipino in the list?
Madam Raided
Remember Heidi Fleiss, the Hollywood madam that got raided along with her black book and the
names of rich, powerful and famous people? Well, Charlie Sheen was one of those people
on the list. But instead of waiting to be outed, he came out, admitted it willingly and went
on the star in the hit series “Two and a Half men,” where he played a womanizing, harddrinking brother to Jon Cryer. Eventually, he was also fired from that show after 8 seasons
for personal reasons. Well, at least he was single when the madam was raided. The only
ones who suffered were the escorts who lost their living.
Double Standard on Poe
Why are they asking Poe to run as VP first when
nobody asked Aquino to run as VP to
Roxas before? Both of them were senators
with no accomplishments. Yet, Aquino
ran for presidency on the strength of
his family name. And that is what Poe
is banking on also. Besides, asking Poe
to step aside is like asking Bruno Mars to stay
out of the spotlight so people will buy my music.
You can spray perfume on rotten egg but you
cannot make people buy it.
Free For All
They assume that if Poe runs with Roxas, both of
them will win. But the vote for president and vice
president in the Philippines is separate, just like
in the US. It is still possible to have a scenario
where Binay wins as President and
Poe wins as VP. Now, I read that Vilma
Santos will run as VP to Roxas. What
they are probably hoping is that the
popularity of the Poe or Vilma wil rub
some off on Roxas enough that people will vote
for him as president.
Why Carne Norte
my friend’s wife posted photos of corned beef
that she cooked. I praised it and joked if she will
send me some through her husband (my friend
and co-worker). She told me she will give me
the corned beef she cooked if I can
answer why it is called carne norte.
I got no answers on the internet
either but also some asking. I asked
my nephew why who is visiting
in Canada. He said there is an
Argentinian brand of corned beef
in the Philippines called Carne
Norte. From that, I can only guess
that we Filipinos started using it as a generic
term just as all hot tubs are now referred to as
Jacuzzis, even if the brand of the hot tub is Grand
Rapids or Aura.
This is just my guess po. If you have other
answers, feel free to share them.
Aquino’s Promise
“Magpapasagasa ako sa train if MRT and LRT
do not improve” is what President Aquino
said. I am not sure if it is a promise or not.
Sus Guinoo naman. As if it wil happen naman
iyan. We all know that no politician keeps
their promise in the Philippines, if it is indeed
a promise.
Submit ads & press releases by
August 15 for the September 2015 issue.
L M Confidential
ittle
anila
EDITOR: Jose Baking
EMAIL: [email protected]
PUBLISHED BY: Match International Group
TEL: 416-945-2336
CORRESPONDENTS:
Noli Gumapac
Gerrard Amparo
Sheila Camangian
Raymond Santos
NOTICE
4
Aruze Group Chief Executive Officer Takahiro Usui describes
Okada as “a genius” who revolutionized slot machines by adding
computerized software to its mechanical components.
Usui explained that previously, slot machines were purely mechanical until Okada combined this with software that allows for predetermined winning results. This is much more secure and reliable as
slight mechanical faults do not result in payouts, and it is also much
harder to cheat, he said. It allows for flexibility. Since the result is
pre-determined, the display can consistently produce combinations
that are very close to winning ones, creating “more excitement for
players,” he added. Okada also added facets of Japanese culture, such
as the blazing lights of pachinko machines to the slot machines in
order to create a unique identity.
“It’s this kind of innovation, started by Mr Okada that runs in the
DNA of the company. Without him the company wouldn’t survive,”
Usui said.
Based on this innovation, Aruze has grown to supply almost 10%
of the slot machines worldwide, and 15% to 20% in Asia.
In 2014, it booked a revenue of $100 million (P4.5 billion) and is
targeting at least a 20% increase this year, for a projected revenue of
$150 million (P6.8 billion), Usui said.
The company has supplied about 1.5 million slot machines to
casinos worldwide, all made in its Batangas factory.
From the Philippines
Jojo Taduran
CORRESPONDENTS
The advertiser has purchased the right of reproduction in LM
Confidential only & not for use for other publications. The exception
applies if the advertising material was supplied by the advertiser.
www.FilipinoGoodLife.com
www.LMConfidential.com
MANILA, Philippines – The bright lights and vast amounts of
money laid down in Macau and Las Vegas have always been linked
with the heady cocktail of the fast, high stakes lifestyle, constantly
attracting those who wish to try their luck.
The Philippines plays a part in this, as the country contributes
directly to one of the backbones of the gaming industry – the slot
machine.
In Sto Tomas, Batangas, a 650,000-square meter facility churns
out about 10% of the slot machines that people from all over the
world flock to. The factory is operated by Aruze G.A. Philippines
Branch (Aruze), part of gambling magnate Kazuo Okada’s vast
empire which includes Universal Entertainment Corporation (UEC)
and its Philippine subsidiary, Tiger Resorts Leisure and Entertainment Incorporated (Tiger Resorts).
Okada, who plans to open up the 4th casino to rise in Manila’s
Entertainment City next year, started it all by repairing jukeboxes
and leasing them out in 1969.
This was soon followed by the manufacturing and selling of
pachinko machines and eventually slot machines, the beginning of
Aruze.
The firm now concentrates on manufacturing slot machines and
electronic gaming table and distributes them to casinos worldwide.
Although it is owned by Okada, the firm is not connected to UEC
and it sells slot machines to other casinos as well, company officials
pointed out.
Software-based
I have been living in Canada since 1986. Recently,
..
PRODUCING. Workers at the facility working on its staple product, slot
machines. The facility shipped out 4,500 units in 2014.
Ed Tubale
Froilan Baking
L. M. Confidential
Aruze’s original manufacturing base was in Japan, Usui shared, but
it decided to move its manufacturing base to the Philippines in 2009.
Starting out originally in Laguna, the firm then invested $35 million (P1.5 billion) to build a 65,000 sqm facility in Batangas, its only
manufacturing plant in the world.
“We produce all our products here in Batangas and send them to
Macau, Las Vegas, all over Europe, and Asia, Sydney, and Johannesburg. When you see our machines there, it all came from this plant,”
Usui shared during a tour of the facility on July 22.
Last year, 4,500 units were exported from the plant. Usui added
US LOCATIONS
continued page 26
AUGUST 2015
LAUGH
RESORT
First Confession
A Priest was being honoured at
his retirement dinner after 25
years in the parish. A leading local politician and member of the
congregation was chosen to make
the presentation and to give a little
speech at the dinner. However, he
was delayed, so the Priest decided
to say his own few words while
they waited: Thank Goodness we
Catholics have a wonderful sense of
humour!
“I got my first impression of the
parish from the first confession I
heard here. I thought I had been
assigned to a terrible place. The
very first person who entered my
confessional told me he had stolen
a television set and, when questioned by the police, was able to
lie his way out of it. He had stolen
money from his parents; embezzled
from his employer; had an affair
with his boss’s wife; had sex with
his boss’s 17 year old daughter on
numerous occasions, taken illegal
drugs; had several homosexual affairs; was arrested several times
for public nudity and gave VD to his
sister in-law.
I was appalled that one person
could do so many awful things. But
as the days went on, I learned that
my people were not all like that and
I had, indeed, come to a fine parish
full of good and loving people.”
Just as the Priest finished his
talk, the politician arrived full of
apologies at being late. He immediately began to make the presentation and gave his talk:
“I’ll never forget the first day
our parish Priest arrived,” said
the politician. “In fact, I had the
honour of being the first person to
go to him for confession.”
AUGUST 2015
Honey
Shot
Britney Waito,
who just turned
13, is a young
wonder and
talented girl.
She sings and
dance. She is a
total performer
& entertainer
in Toronto and
is a Little Miss
Philippines 2013
PIDC titlist.
Britney Waito
L. M. Confidential
OGIE’S ADVANTAGE OVER
OTHER CHANNEL CREATORS
MELISSA Ricks is not the only
actor who’s a creator in ABS-CBN’s
ChickenPorkAdobo multi-channel
network. Melissa
will talk
about
her
own experiences as a
mom to
her daughter
Kiera
in her own
channel.
Also having
their
own channels are
AJ Dee
who
talks
about
fashion and
lifestyle,
Erik Tai of
“Showtime”
who uploads
his own
dance videos, and singer-filmmaker
Jeffrey Hidalgo who deals with
music and movies (he has finished
directing the movie “Silong” with
Piolo Pascual and Rhian Ramos).
One interesting channel belongs
to writer-actor Ogie Diaz who will
talk about his family (he has four
daughters aged 13, 11, 7 and 5),
dish out balitang showbiz, blind
items and his own opinions about
the latest issues in tinseltown. “Ang
advantage ko, may access ako sa mga
artista kaya puwede ko silang i-video
asking them to do funny stuff, like
magduling-dulingan sila, na puwede
kong i-feature in my own channel,”
he adds.
5
Philippines
7.1 M Pinoys have cellphones
Less than half a million have no toilets
MANILA - About 7.1-million Filipinos defecate in the open because they
have no toilets, Senator Ralph Recto
said as he quoted a joint report that the
World Health Organization and the
United Nations Children’s Fund said.
“The family cellphone ownership rate
in this country is higher than toilets per
household,” Recto said.
The joint report says 570,000 Filipinos
use “unimproved sanitation facilities”
like buckets and open-pit latrines when
defecating.
It says more than half a million Filipinos have no toilets, 8.4 million have no
access to clean drinking water, and about
2.3 million use untreated “surface water”
from rivers, dams, canals for drinking.
“Clean water and sanitation must
be part of the assumption of the 2016
budget,” Recto said.
The Aquino administration’s sixth
and final budget, which reportedly will
breach P3 trillion, is expected to be
submitted to Congress by the end of the
month.
“To our credit, we have made great
progress on these two items,” Recto said.
He said the government had brought
clean water to 40 million people since
1990 and 41 million Filipinos had also
gained access to clean toilets since that
year.
But on sanitation facilities, “due perhaps to the number of people resorting
to ‘open defecation’”, the Philippines was
graded as having merely made “good
progress.”
Among the ongoing projects that
should get more funds next year is the
construction of toilets and communal
drinking faucets in public schools, a
component of the Basic Educational
Facilities program of the Department of
Education this year.
He said clean-water projects must be
pursued “because water-borne diseases
cost Filipinos P2.8 billion annually in
treatment costs and lost economic opportunities.
“Hand-washing cuts by one-third to
one-half the number of diarrhea cases.
If we use the number of people diarrhea
downed in 2010, which was 269,000,
imagine how many cases will be avoided
and lives saved if we can bring more
clean piped water to homes.”
Governor Vi will not run for any
position in 2016
Batangas Governor Vilma SantosRecto will not be running for any
government
position
in
the
next
election. This
is
according
to a report as
rumors have
circulated that
she is one of
the prospects
for the Vice
President position.
“After this time, wala po akongpolitical
plan… andito ako sa Balayan regarding
scholarship; this is my focus now. So hindi ko
po priority yan, para pag-isipin o magplano
regarding a national position,” she said.
She also added that she does not
entertain formal dialogues about her
running for Vice President even though
there are people who are convincing her
to run for a higher position.
At present, she is now on her last term
as the Governor of Batangas and Gov.
Vi said, “Malaki ang utang na loob ko sa
Batangueño na ako ay pinagkatiwalaan
at nakatapos po ng siyam na taon. At
ngayon po ay nasa huling termino na ako
bilang Gobernador. Maraming maraming
salamat po sa tiwala.”
This was after Roxas, the presumptive
standard bearer of the ruling Liberal
Party, admitted that a tandem with the
multi-awarded actress is always a possibility.
“Well, bakit naman hindi? It’s not for
me to say. Pero tignan na lang natin ang
record (ni Ms. Santos),” Roxas said in a
chance interview during the distribution
of police patrol vehicles in Batangas City
just recently.
Roxas noted Santos’ almost flawless
performance in running the affairs of the
province of Batangas has qualified her
for the vice presidency.
Andrea goes
out of comfort
zone
Andrea Torres is happy to be
joining the cast of GMA7’s primetime
drama, “Pari ‘Koy”. She will appear
after the story concerning Kris Bernal
and Mark Herras has been resolved,
with Kris admitting she’s the culprit
in the crime that Mark is accused of.
Andrea will play the role of an escort
girl and nightclub dancer who will
have an affair with title-roler Dingdong Dantes’ own father, Don Manuel,
played by Spanky Manikan. “Naiiba
‘yung role ko rito, something I haven’t
portrayed before, ‘yung maging other
woman,” she says. “This is out of my
comfort zone and so different from
the lead roles I’ve done before na
ako ‘yung api-apihang bida. So this
is going to be a big challenge for me
dahil I don’t see myself na malalagay
ako sa ganoong sitwasyon in real life.
Hopefully, with the help of our director, Maryo de los Reyes, maitatawid
ko naman ito nang maayos.”
She’s looking forward to be doing
scenes with Dingdong as Fr. Kokoy.
“We have worked before in
‘My Beloved’ na si Mikael Daez ang
kapareha ko. This time, magkakaroon
daw kami ng dramatic confrontation
scenes kasi nga may affair ako sa
daddy niya.”
“Pari ‘Koy” is extended for one
more month and after Andrea, more
big guest stars will follow. The character played by Carla Abellana,
Michelle, will also make a surprising
comeback. Will she be the reason why
Dingdong as Fr. Kokoy will no longer
return to the priesthood?
Conida Marie Halley Wins Miss Philippines PIDC 2015 Title
By: Tony A. San Juan ,OCT.
“It is important for me to help
promote our unique & enviable
heritage, culture and values of
what Filipinos are”.
With this convincing and confident
answer to the question :” If you win the
beauty title what would you do during
your reign?”, Contestant No. 9 has clearly
proven to the beauty pageant’s board of
judges that she deserves to be adjudged
the complete winner. Unanimously picked,
Conida Marie Halley, a 15- year old James
Cardinal McGuigan Catholic Secondary School Grade 9 student from North
York was crowned Miss Philippines PIDC
2015 amongst 8 other beautiful contenders. Raina Resplandor , Miss Philippines
PIDC 2014, after a curt video showing of
her 2014 reign, donned the royal headdress
to Conida Marie, her highly elated successor.
Being the audience darling, Conida
Marie Halley was awarded a tiara, sash,
6
cash award and returned airfare by Korean
Air to the Philippines as well as doubly
honoured with 3 distinctions, the “Miss
Photogenic”, “Miss Maria Clara” and “Miss
Intellectual” titles. Other winners recognized with tiara , sash and cash prizes
were: Marina Saleeb, 1st Runner-up and
Janelle Apresto, 2nd Runner-up. Marina
also received the “Miss Charity “ & “Miss
Online Sensation” trophies while Janelle
was named “Miss Popularity”.
The strong bevy of winning beauties with
trophies and sashes, includes :1) Maygen Hinchliffe who was accorded with 4
awards, as “Best in National Attire”, “Poise
and Beauty”, “Spirit” and “Casual Wear”, 2)
Joie Ann Merana, garnered “Miss Freedom” and “Best in Talent”, 3) Lara Denise
Capistrano, won “Miss Congeniality”, 4)
Georelle Mendoza, as “Miss Heritage”, 5)
Lovely Valentine Valenzuela, the “Miss
Pearl of the Orient “ winner; and 6) Leah
Villanueva, named “Miss Tourism”.
The popular and prestigious beauty and
talent event, organized and sponsored by
the 16- year old Philippine Independence
Day Council ( PIDC), is a major part of
the annual celebration of the 117th Araw
ng Kalayaan anniversary of the Philippines
in Toronto, Canada. PIDC is an umbrella
organization of more than 15 Filipino Canadian community associations in Ontario.
Engagingly led by Norma Carpio, PIDC
president, the members of the pageant’s organizing committee is composed of overall
pageant chair Gene Pardo-Elamparo, “Miss
Philippines” chief Aurora Ticzon Elefano
and “Little Miss Philippines” head Helen
Pico-Lao. Karen Pascual-Binaday served
as floor manager, Aris Elefano as stage
manager, Karen Amador- Lopez and Daniela Pozo acted as choreographers and as
well, Click Frame Creative, photographers.
Other event coordinators & staff include:
Luz Aguila , Peter Eli-Gonzales, Karen
Liguidliguid, Melanie Marasigan, Lester
Millado. Among the PIDC officers and
volunteers who provided assistance and
L. M. Confidential
guidance were: Mel Alphonso, Randy
Bucao, Verth Bugtong, Rose Calvo, Pedro
Carpio, Ben & Paulina Corpuz, Ding Cruz,
Rose Cruz, Aris Elefano, Mercy Lagumbay,
Jess & Susan SJ Llanera, Cesar Manebo,
Aimee Maravilla, Minda Neri, Alma &
Jesse Pacetes, Cheryll Samson- Ronquillo,
Roy Start, Vilma Tahsin, Tom Tan, Roger
Tarca, Nanding & Nene Ticzon, Al Tupe,
Jun Villaruz and Zeny Zagala.
Tasked to pick this year’s winners were
notable GTA personalities: George Dela
Rosa of Luminus Financial, Lauren Fernandez of Socialite Beauty Bar, dental practitioner Dr. Christina L. Gamo, Sa-Kyeom
Kang of Korean Air, Agnes Miranda of
World Financial Group, Rafael Nebres of
Action Honda, Rafael Policarpio of LBC
Mundial Cargo Corporation, and Rose Ty
of Coldwell Banker Elite. Members of the
Association of Filipino Canadian AccounCONIDA
continued on page 8
AUGUST 2015
Vina admits to looking for love
VINA Morales looks so trim and sexy at
the thanksgiving presscon of “Nasaan Ka
Nang Kailangan Kita”. When the soap
started airing in January, we’re worried she
might not be credible in re-creating the
role of the mother that was first played by
Susan Roces in the original movie version.
This is because she simply looks too young
to be believable in the role of the mom of
two grownup daughters, Jane Oineza and
Loisa Andalio. But in all fairness to Vina,
she was able to be persuasive in the role of
Cecilia. As one writer says: Naitawid naman niya nang maayos.
“I really tried my best para maging
convincing sa role ko,” she says. “I’m an actress so okay lang sa’kin to do mother roles
at my age. Actually, hindi lang ako nanay
rito kasi nabuntis si Jane ni Jerome Ponce
kaya magiging lola pa ako rito.”
How was it working with young
newcomers like Jane, Loisa, Jerome and
Joshua Garcia? “Ang maganda sa mga
batang ito, they don’t compete with each
other and may effort sila to grow in their
craft. Si Joshua, kung dati, take 21 before
he perfects a take, ngayon, take one na lang.
Thanks also to the directors kasi pag hindi
sila happy sa mga bata, talagang paulit-ulit
ang eksena hanggang maging tama. And
it’s good nakikinig sila and iniintinding
mabuti ang instructions sa kanila.”
How about she and Denise Laurel
as Toni who stole her husband, Christian
Vasquez as Leandro? Do they get to really
hurt each other in their confrontation
scenes where they slap one another? “We
try to help each other para mas mapaganda
ang eksena. Totoo ‘yung mga sampalan
namin. Ayaw naming dayain kasi mahahalata. Pero never naging personalan ang
sampalan namin. Kung medyo napapalakas
ang mga sampal, we say sorry to each other
right away.”
It’s very obvious that she’s blooming
these days? It looks like she has found a
new love life. “Naku, sana nga totoo. But
sorry, it’s not true. I was dating for a while,
but nothing serious. I’m open naman and
I’m praying na sana nga, dumating na siya,
soon.”
Passport rules eased for foreigners
MANILA - More foreigners will get an
opportunity to have fun in the Philippines
as the Department of Justice (DOJ) today
relaxed its rules on the validity of their
passports. Justice Secretary Leila de Lima
has approved a circular allowing the admission of foreigners upon arrival in airports
and seaports provided their embassies or
consulates in the Philippines are authorized
to renew or extend the validity of their
passports, and there are no grounds to deny
them entry under existing laws, rules and
regulations.
“There is a need to revise the purpose
and practicality of the six-month passport
AUGUST 2015
validity rule given the improvements in our
country’s immigration controls and to align
with international best practices,” De Lima
said. The new policy, which took effect on
July 15, originated from the recommendation of the Bureau of Immigration and the
Office for Competition.
Immigration Commissioner Siegfred
Mison said giving ease of access to foreigners under a new passport validity rule was
consistent with the mandate of the BI to
administer and enforce immigration laws.
“It will lessen instances of exclusion
of foreign nationals based solely on the
deficiency in their passport validity and
contribute to our tourism efforts,” he said.
De Lima said the new policy is part
of the government’s policy to provide
for a more expeditious system of travel
documentation to encourage and facilitate
foreign tourist travel.
“Allowing foreign nationals with
passports of less than six-months validity
from date of arrival to enter the country
will further facilitate the entry of foreign
arrivals, yet pose minimal risk to national
security, public safety, public health and the
general welfare as there are existing operation mechanisms to protect the country’s
interests,” she said.
L. M. Confidential
Yaya Dub
makes ‘Kilig’
team with Alden
LOOKS like Alden Richards has
found a ka-loveteam in Yaya Dub of
the Juan for All segment
of “Eat Bulaga”. Yaya
Dub is the hilarious yaya
of Wally Bayola who
plays Lola Nidora in the
said portion and they
spoof the Pabebe Girls.
Yaya Dub’s real name is Maine
Mendoza and she’s doing a good
job of lip synching the lines given to
her to deliver comically. She’s very
charming on screen and seems like she
has the makings of a good comedian.
Viewers are very much amused when
Alden waves to her and she waves
back the Pabebe way in return. They’re
gaining a lot of fans who enjoy their
KiligPaMore interactions on screen.
We’re really happy for Alden as this
is a good exposure for him while he’s
waiting for his next soap project from
GMA7. Most of the time, he doesn’t
have to do anything except to look
good in his portions with Yaya Dub and
he’s really such a great looking eye
candy on TV. We won’t be surprised if
they’d eventually be paired even out
of ‘Eat Bulaga’. And we also wouldn’t
be surprised if Yaya Dub would likewise
be included in the cast of “Sunday Pinas Saya” that will eventually replace
“Sunday All Stars”.
Yaya Dub aka Maine Mendoza is
20 years old, a college graduate from
Sta. Maria, Bulacan. She was discovered when she posted her dubsmash
compilations on Facebook spoofing Kris Aquino and this made her a
Youtube sensation as the Queen of
Dubsmash. She then auditioned for Juan
for All in “Eat Bulaga” and is now getting famous for her dubsmash work.
7
Philippines
Trending Now: Affordable
Gowns, unusual themes
Tying the knot soon? Here are some
ideas you can tap.
Affordable gown
If you’re short on cash but dreaming of
an ideal, traditional wedding, you must
find suppliers that can provide quality
goods at an affordable price.
Case in point, supplier Olive Amor
offers bridal gowns as affordable as
P2,000. Olive Amor has been in the
wedding industry for 30 years, catering
to clients in hometown Tacloban. But
when Typhoon Yolanda hit, she had to
pack up and move to Manila to start
anew.
Now, she’s put her business online
as Wedding Gowns and Accessories
by Olive Amor. Though she’s had some
trouble breaking into the Metro Manila
market, she told ANC Shop Talk that
the brides that come to her constantly
inspire her to keep working, as they
remind her of new beginnings.
On ANC’s Shop Talk, she talked
about a P2,000 gown that she made out
of a curtain fabric, and said that it was
one of her most beautiful designs.
Out-of-the-box weddi
ng ideas by the Rebellious Brides
If you’re tired of traditions and want
something different on your big day, why
not be a “rebel bride?”
The Wedding Agency by the
Rebellious Brides, is a new concept
business targetting couples who want an
out-of-the-box experience.
The Wedding Agency by the
Rebellious Brides is a consultancy
business that comes up
with unusual wedding
concepts. An advertising
native, Fuentes and her
business partner Kai
Cruz intend to focus on
churning out creative
and unique ideas for
their clients.
One of their most
popular concepts was
an accidental hit—
inspired by the Disney
movie Malifecent. It
was so remarkable
that it became viral,
and was even featured
in international
publications such as Elite
Daily and Huffington
Post.
GREAT NEW
PORTIONS ON
‘EAT BULAGA’
Singer-composer Kitchie Nadal
wore aP799
wedding gown.
Philippines
NEWS
Free public Wi-Fi
across PHL
MANILA - The Department of Science
and Technology is about to implement
free public Wi-Fi across the entire
country.
The average speed will be 256 kbps, reports Bam Alegre on State of the Nation
with Jessica Soho.
“Kaugnay nito ng karapatan ng
mamamayan sa impormasyon,” said
Edgardo Cabarrios, NTC Director.
Cabarrios added that there will be datacapping to prevent users from abusing
the free Wi-Fi.
According to IT experts, this project
will be able to help people in provinces
with education, especially in since they
will have access to government databases. It also offers a cheaper alternative
to long-distance phone calls.
According to IT expert Philip Cheang, before other countries with nationwide free Wi-Fi deployed their projects,
their private Internet services were
already fast to begin with.
CONIDA
continued from page 6
tants who tabulated the results include:
Imelda Bautista, Renz Gonzales, JP
Lunaria, MaryAnn Mallari, and Estrellita Ortiz,
The lively and well-applauded 4-hour
program also showcased talented musical
performers such as former Little Misses
Elle Delizo (2008), Britney Waito(2013),
Hailey Chyrel Malanum (2012) and
Raina Resplandor ( Miss Philippines
PIDC 2014).
Ably hosted jointly by actor- model
Scott Dion Brown, Ms. Philippines
PIDC 2012 2nd runner-up Janice Hernane and PIDC Miss Philippines 2014
8
BIR padlocks 7-11
PARANAQUE- The Bureau of Internal
Revenue (BIR) has padlocked a branch of
a popular convenience store in Parañaque
for its alleged refusal to settle its multimillion-peso tax debts.
Closed was the 7-11 convenience store
operated by Shannon John Franco Espinosa at Mike Kelly Bldg., Sucat Road,
San Isidro based on the recommendation
of Parañaque Revenue District Officer
Rose Miniano to Makati Revenue Regional Director Jonas Amora.
Amora said the closure was implemented after the taxpayer failed to
comply with the requirements specified
in the 48-hour notice and the five-day
value-added tax (VAT) compliance.
He did not disclose the amount of tax
liabilities incurred by the convenience
store but only said it was “substantial.”
The convenience store was the subject
of a mission order that authorized
enforcement officers to monitor and take
inventory of the number of cash register
machines and point of sales (CRMPOS) used to issue sales invoices or
receipts.
Rafael Nebres of Action Honda and Lauren
Fernandez are two of the judges of the
pageant.
contestant Bettina Carlos, the evening’s
show was attended by over 500 guests
and fans and held at the Korean Cultural
Centre in North York on June 20, 2015.
PIDC president Norma Carpio in
her apt message graciously welcomed
Leyte recovery
slow
MANILA - House independent
bloc leader and Leyte Rep. Ferdinand
Martin Romualdez complained anew
of
the
government’s
snail-paced
implementation of the rehabilitation and
rebuilding efforts in the Yolanda-stricken
areas.
Romualdez, whose district
in Tacloban City was hardest-hit by
Yolanda, lamented that only P47 billion
out of the P167.9 billion committed funds
under the Comprehensive Rehabilitation
and Recovery Plan (CRRP) as of June
2015 were reportedly downloaded. He
said the Aquino administration should
continue to focus on delivering the
services and programs it promised to the
Yolanda survivors.
“It just highlights
the fact that there were lots of promises
made, but still remain unfulfilled. A lot
of commitment of resources that have not
been delivered,” Romualdez, a lawyer and
president of the Philippine Constitution
Association (Philconsa), said.
Romualdez also asked the concerned
government officials to itemize where the
P47 billion funds have been spent.
and thanked those present as well as
the major sponsors, donors, media
partners,guests, judges, parents, volunteers and the entire PIDC family
for their continued support and cooperation, declaring the pageant a very
memorable milestone in the community.
She also extended an invitation to the
upcoming 2015 Mabuhay Invitational
Cup Basketball Tourney on July 31 &
August 1-2- at Downsview Hoopdome
, the Mabuhay Philippines Festival
on August 29-30 at the David Pecaut
Square, Toronto, and other scheduled
PIDC events. ( T.San Juan).
L. M. Confidential
ANOTHER portion of “Eat Bulaga” that’s
getting to be very popular is “That’s My
Bae”. It’s eight semi-finalists who are all
really good looking now have fans of
their own: Miggy Tolentino, Joel Palencia,
Kenneth Medrano, Michael Catayas
(said to be a half brother of Raymond
Bagatsing), Josh Howard, Ray Cataluna,
Daniel Aquino and Jay Arcilla.
They’re such a big hit when doing their
“Twerk It Like Miley” dance moves. Another
hit was the recent Regine PaMore contest
where Jonalyn Viray bested the likes of
Jaya, Ima Castro, Jerald Napoles and Faith
Cuneta with her death-defying act of
singing while flying around the stage on a
harness. Another great pakulo is “Ballroom
Pa More,” showing the dancing prowess of
many celebrities. No wonder “Eat Bulaga”
remains to be the most watched, number
one noontime show on TV.
‘BAKER KING’
EXTENDED
MARK Neumann and the whole cast of
“Baker King” have reasons to rejoice. TV5
management has just announced that their
show, which is doing very well and loaded
with commercials, will be extended for a
month.” Maganda talaga ang feedback sa
show and very encouraging ang reviews
so instead of the usual one season or 13
weeks, madaragdagan sila ng four more
weeks or bale one more month sa ere,” says
TV5 Entertainment Head Wilma Galvante.
“This is good news to the show’s writers
because they can now be able to follow
the full story of the original Koreanovela.”
The show’s director, Mac Alejandre,
is understandably very pleased with this
latest development in the show. He’s really
doing his best to make the show more
appealing and lovable to the viewing
public and its extension means that
they’re succeeding. The show has even
constructed a set for its own bakeshop at
the JE Camp in Tanay where they tape the
show regularly.
A grandmother whether
she likes it or not
WHETHER she likes it or not, Jean
Garcia is now officially a grandmother.
Her daughter, Jennica, 25, gave birth to
a baby girl last Wednesday at St. Luke’s
QC. Her name will be Athena Mori. Jennica
and husband Alwyn Uytingco, 27, were
married in February of last year after being
on a relationship for four years. As for Jean,
she says she’ll ask Jennica not to make her
daughter call her Lola. “I haven’t thought of
yet kung anong itatawag niya sa akin,” she
says. “Basta ayoko ng lola.”
AUGUST 2015
SUMMER 2015
continued from page 1
them, with the young ones preferring to
get their entertainment through their
computers, cellphones, and ipads.
We went to church first and then to
lunch. Lunch is a smorgasbord of different delicacies. One of those sinfully
delicious food is the one called Buro. I
skipped the desserts and other sweets
that have milk or cream on them. With
the heat and humidity, walking outside
feels like being cooked. With all those
food inside me, and the heat from the
sun above bearing down on me and
from the ground up, I will be caught in
the middle and my stomach will end up
This is the Annset tour bus.
acting as a frying pan. I made sure not to
eat a lot because they said dinner is in my
cousin’s place.
Before dinner, we had some games on
the front yard with all the kids. There was
the pabitin, the palayok, a sack race and
an egg race. Get togethers will be a bit
boring if there are not activities. Afterwards, we had our boodle fight dinner.
Boodle fight is the marine’s way of eating
on banana leaves where the rice is piled
spend on building up a concrete wall
because they need it more. Anyway, the
bag distribution went well. There were
some who wants to get a freebie, saying
they plan to enroll. Naturally, we turned
them down. You don’t even know if they
plan to enroll. That is when I found
out that small things still matter back
home, like spiral notebooks. I am
surprised how the little things matter to other people. Here, we worry
about the latest iphone or the latest
gadget. Back home, we still have
students where having a spiral
notebook, pen, and backpack is a
source of relief, and of joy.
On our last day in Pampanga,
Ate Fina gave us a tour of some of
the churches and the Betis Furniture
company. We went to Nayong Pilipino,
now located at Clark Freeport Zone. In
the afternoon, we went back home to
supposed to go to the cemetery when
we reach Quezon City to pay respects
to our departed loved ones. On the way
back, we stopped at one of the the stores
we stopped by when we were going to
Baler. In one of the stores in barangay
Lub-Lub, the salesgirl immediately
recognized Celle.
“Ay ma’m naiwan niyo it. Tatawagan
ko kayo pero wala pong ID sa loob”
Celle was relieved and gave her a bit
of money. Celle was also ashamed to
open and count it in front of her. She
need not have worried. The money was
intact.
We asked for her name and Celle
posed with her. Her name is Raffelyn
Pascual. We said that we will post it in
facebook to show our friends the honest
person with the hopes that if they ever
travel that way, they should stop by and
buy something from
the store.
Unfortunately, the
store is
not easy to
see. There is no sign or anything. Still we
hope that her honesty brings her luck in
her life.
By the time we reached the house, I
begged off from going to the cemetery. It
was a good decision because my stomach
acted up.
The next day, they went to Mt. Pinatubo and Magalawa Resort in Zambales
without me. Then, I saw on facebook that
actress Angel Locsin was also doing the
I CAN EAT 3 FULL MEALS A DAY IN THE
PHILIPPINES BUT NOT HERE IN CANADA
Quezon city.
After a day of rest, me, my brother
Froy and wife Celle, my sister sister Luth
with husband Kuya Hermie went to
Sabang beach in Baler Quezon. We
were there from Thursday to Saturday.
We made a few stops along the way.
When we arrived, Celle found out
that she misplaced her wallet containing her money. The wallet had no id,
just the money. So, even if an honest
person found it, there was no way of
getting in touch with her. Anyway,
our stay was spent swimming, eatEating the newly-cooke arroz caldo at Ditumabo
ing and walking around the town.
On the second day, we went to
in the middle topped with the meat. In
Ditumabo
waterfalls. From the main
this case, we just had the meal in the
road,
your
vehicle
will pass a one-lane
middle and rice was served individually,
road.
So,
if
you
meet
a vehicle going
getting only what we can finish.
the
opposite
direction,
one of you
The day after the reunion, we went to
will
back
in
to
one
of
the
pseudovisit my cousin’s husband place. Ric, the
driveways
husband is having a
that dot the Celle & Froy eating at Jerry Shan’s in Baler Quezon
birthday celebration in
road. Then,
a place with no address.
trek at Mt. Pinatubo and they posed with
after parking,
Amazingly, we found
her. Just my luck.
you start the
it. The house is located
Anyway, my next trip was in Batangas
trek through a
beside a church. The
to visit my friend Sherwin and the Amrugged, slippery
road was crowded with
paro family. They drove me all around.
trail. Wear a
tricycles that we had
They brought me to Skyranch at Tagaythick-soled
trouble maneuvering to
tay. Too bad it was raining, so it was
snadal. Near
get inside the driveway.
foggy that we can’t see anything. It was a
the beginning
Fortunately, everyone
wonderful trip anyway.
Okoy from sidewalk vendors
of the trail, you
on the street that evening
That is where Sherwin introduced me
wil find some
were very helpful in movto Batangas goto. It is like stew with
entrepreneural residents selling slippers,
ing the parked tricycles on the street so
we can get in. It turns out that the family souvenirs, arroz-caldo
and other food stuff.
is known to the neighborhood. I should
It is advisable to go to
not have been surprised. In the province,
the falls early in the
everyone still knows everyone.
morning to beat the
The next day, we assisted my cousin
crowd, not to menFina Joven, who owns Annset Travel in
tion the traffic. Not
her charity drive at the San Juan School,
only that, when you
just across the house. She is giving bags
get down, there is a
containing notebooks and pens and
big chance you will
also free snacks to every student who is
already enrolled in the school from grade be the first customers
for those arroz caldo.
1 to 6. It is her way of giving back. She
Having a game of pabitin before dinner
And they are good.
also told the teachers not to tell anyone
We noticed afterwards
or else some politicians might make appork innards without the rice. The rice is
that they were already adding water after
pearances and take the redit. We noticed
separate.
we ordered. So we know we got the first
that there is one concrete wall with her
I found out that only in the Philipserving that is why they were good.
misspelled name on it. Apparently, she
pines
can you eat 3 full meals a day and
On the last day, I felt a bit off and
gave money before for the uniforms of
not
feel
like you are overeating.
had no appetite for breakfast. We are
the school band. The school decided to
AUGUST 2015
L. M. Confidential
Anne handles
bashers
“To each his own. We should just respect
other people’s opinions,” said actress-TV
host Anne Curtis when asked for her
advice on how to handle online bashers.
Anne is one of the most “followed” users
on the micro-blogging site Twitter, with
a little over three million people reading
her every post.
“With all that I went through as a
show biz personality, I don’t get affected
by negative comments anymore. I’ve
come to accept that it’s part of my work,”
said Anne, also one of the country’s top
female product endorsers. “In the beginning, I would feel hurt, then angry, but
I just ignore the haters now. There were
times when the comments were so far
out and silly that I’d just laugh them off.”
Anne’s attention is currently focused
on helping her loved ones, “who are new
in the industry and who are just starting to learn how to cope with bashers,”
she said. “I hope that netizens, especially
with what’s happening (to young celebrities) these days, will soon realize that it’s
not cool to bash other people.”
Bea on Zanjoe:
We’re working it
out
BEA Alonzo feels blessed to be given
the chance to work with Richard Gomez
and Dawn Zulueta in Star Cinema’s
“The Love Affair” that opens in theaters
on August 12.
“Naging tagahanga nila ako after
watching them before in ‘Hihintayin
Kita sa Langit’,” she
says. “They’re icons at
kinakabahan ako noong
una ko silang makasama,
but it’s good they’re both
approachable. They didn’t
treat me na baguhan lang
and they’re both very generous actors.
Si Kuya Goma, masayang katrabaho
kasi laging nagpapatawa sa set. Ang
dami niyang kuwento. Maganda rin ang
personality niya. You can see enjoy siya
sa buhay niya, unlike me who can get so
serious at times. Si Miss Dawn naman,
fan niya ako. Gandang-ganda talaga ako
sa kanya and I tell her that. Very graceful
ang bawat galaw niya. I like the way she
handles her life and her career. I want to
be like her someday.”
So how is it doing love scenes with
Goma?
“He’s a gentleman. Very professional.
Hindi ako nahiya. Ako nga nag-take
advantage sa kanya,” she jokes.
In the movie, her character says she is
broken and in pain. In real life, there are
talks that she and BF Zanjoe Marudo
are currently going through some kinks
in their relationship. Is she also broken
and in pain even off cam? “No, okay ako.
Okay kami. Yes, may pinagdaanan kami
but we’re still together. We’re working
it out. Galing lang kami sa London at
masaya kami roon. Responsibilidad mo
sa sarili mo na maging happy ka.”
9
Little Manila
Filipino WWII veterans, families can reunite
under new White House policy
WASHINGTON - Filipino World War II veterans can soon be
reunited with their families in the United States through a new
policy introduced by the White House last July 15.
This news comes after President Barack Obama’s
announcement of a series of executive actions on immigration
back in November 2014, wherein he tasked key federal agencies
to look at ways to “modernize and streamline” the immigration
system and provide recommendations.
The policy, included in a report released by the agencies, will
allow certain family members of Filipino veterans who fought in
the World War II to seek parole under a program set up by the
Department of Homeland Security (DHS).
Estimates indicate that as many as 26,000 Filipino veterans
(of the over 260,000 Filipino soldiers who fought) are US
citizens, after long being excluded from a law that granted
citizenship to foreign soldiers serving in the US forces.  Some
of the veterans have petitioned family members from the
Philippines to join them in the United States; however, wait
times can last years, often times exceeding 20 years, due to
statutory visa caps.
With the population of veterans rapidly aging—the White
House estimates around 6,000 veterans are still alive in the US
today—having family members by their sides would provide
them with the necessary support and care.
“Through this recommendation, those who endure these waits
will have the opportunity to seek parole in order to be reunited
with and care for their Filipino veteran family member,” a
White House official familiar with the policy told the Asian
Journal on Wednesday.
In recent years, the United States set up similar parole
programs, such as the Cuban Family Reunification Parole
Program and the Haitian Family Reunification Parole Program.
Under those parole programs, the beneficiaries are allowed to
come to the US and be eligible to apply for work authorization
while waiting to apply for lawful permanent resident status.
Though the roll out date of the policy affecting Filipino
veterans and their families is yet to be announced, the US
Citizenship and Immigration Services and State Department
will provide the application process, and will be separate from
the general family-based immigration system.
Decisions will be made on a case-by-case basis for a
temporary period of time based upon “urgent humanitarian
reasons or significant public benefit.”
Praise for family reunification
Attempts to reunite Filipino veterans and their families have
been introduced in the past, including the Filipino Veterans
Family Reunification Act introduced earlier this year by Sen.
Mazie Hirono (D-Hawaii) and Sen. Harry Reid (D-Nev.), but
10
have failed to gain any traction.
In a statement, Hirono called the White House’s move “the
right thing to do.”
“For many years, I’ve fought to end the visa backlog for the
sons and daughters of Filipino World War II veterans, whether
through legislation or other avenues like today’s announcement
by the president. We made a promise to these individuals, and
expediting reunification with their children through parole
brings us one significant step closer in fulfilling that promise,”
she said.
Several community leaders have also lauded the new policy.
“This is a day to celebrate,” Mee Moua, president and
executive director of Asian Americans Advancing Justice |
AAJC, said in a statement. “Even though the US government
promised Filipino World War II veterans US citizenship in
recognition of their service and contributions to America,
it took more than 50 years before they actually received
citizenship. Until now, the inhumanely long visa backlog
has separated them from their children and denied them the
opportunity to live together in the United States.”
Rozita Lee, a former commissioner for the White House
Commission on Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders, sees
the policy as a testament to the years of educating government
leaders on the contributions of Filipino veterans during World
War II.
“I’m excited if this can be implemented,” Lee told the Asian
Journal. “This [issue of ] Filipino WWII veterans has been
something I’ve been working on for as long as I can remember.
As far back as 2006, I was flying to DC primarily to fight for
them in the halls of Congress and to do some education on the
veterans for those who did not know [much] about WWII.”
“My first reaction was happiness. But I am also saddened
remembering our veterans like Manong Emong Guillermo and
Jack Tejada and community champions like Alex Esclamado,
who walked the halls of Congress, fighting for recognition and
family reunification. They are gone now but their legacy lives
on,” Marites Branigin, capitol region chair of the National
Federation of Filipino American Associations (NaFFAA), said.
A version of the Filipino Veterans Family Reunification Act
was included in the comprehensive bipartisan bill that passed
the Senate in 2013, but did not move forward in the House.
“We are happy with the [announcement] because it can
provide a mechanism for Filipino veterans to be with their
families,” Art Garcia, national coordinator of Justice for Filipino
American Veterans ( JFAV), added. “It’ll be a process and we
will help the veterans apply for this once the applications come
out, since they’re getting older.”
In addition to family reunification, other movements have
called for more recognition for the veterans. Earlier in June, a
bipartisan bill was introduced in Congress to honor Filipino
veterans with a Congressional Gold Medal.
The report released Wednesday also provided
recommendations to digitize the visa application, which remains
mostly paper-based, improve the issuance of employment-based
immigrant visa numbers, and simplify systems for domestic
violence survivors who seek immigration relief through the
Violence Against Women Act (VAWA) self-petitioner process.
L. M. Confidential
JERICHO
DOESN’T WANT A
BABY YET WITH
WIFE KIM
JERICHO Rosales once again shines in
his role as Gael, the older brother of Paulo
Avelino as Carlos, in “Bridges of Love”,
that will end in three weeks. His intensity as
an actor is
very evident
in several dramatic scenes,
particularly in
his confrontations with
Paulo as
his long lost
brother.
“It’s a blessing to do a show na puro
magagaling ang mga kasama ko,” he says.
“Working with people like Paulo and Maja
Salvador can really make your job easier
dahil alam mong they always deliver.”
After being leaving Genesis, Jericho
transferred to Cornerstone Management,
but he has also left that and he’s now
directly under Star Magic. “I feel that at
this stage ng career ko, they can help me
to give more to my career as an actor,” he
says.
Being so focused on “Bridges of
Love”, he purposefully didn’t appear in
“ASAP” for a while. “Kasi ayokong lalabas
doon na hindi maganda ang quality ng
voice ko, tiyak na mapupulaan lang ako.
Wala rin kasi akong time for rehearsals
and practice kaya ayokong lumabas nang
walang enough preparation. Pagkatapos
ng ‘Bridges of Love’, then I can start focusing on singing again. I plan to produce
a new single or album and work with new
musicians. Next year na ako uli gagawa ng
soap.”
So how’s married life with Kim Jones?
Don’t they intend to have a baby soon?
“We’re doing fine. Saka na kami
magbe-baby. Ang balak namin is to do
some traveling muna together. We cannot
do that anymore kapag may baby na.”
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AUGUST 2015
Philippines to boost free Wi-fi in
DOST-PTV deal
MANILA - A deal between the Department of
Science and Technology (DOST) and People’s
Television Network (PTV) is set to boost the
government’s free Wi-Fi Internet connection
program, particularly in far-flung municipalities.
In a memorandum of agreement, DOST’s
Information and Communications Technology Office
(ICTO) would install Wi-Fi transceivers on PTV’s
broadcast towers. The government-run broadcast
station would also occupy spaces in ICTO’s offices in
at least 11 cities in Visayas and Mindanao.
“This is a welcome development in the
government’s aim to reach Filipinos all over the
country,” said Communications Secretary Herminio
“Sonny” Coloma in a statement on Friday. “Through
DOST’s properties, we will be able to install
additional transmitters to boost the government
channel’s presence in the countryside, while also
supporting free Wi-Fi program.”
The 25-year colocation deal came in the middle of
a P759-million modernization plan for PTV, aiming
to switch from analog to digital broadcast system.
“From 20 percent, PTV’s digital upgrade would
improve the signal reach to 80-90 percent of television
viewers in the country, an audience which the network
sees will benefit from its upcoming improvements
such as on-demand information consumption and
the Emergency Warning Broadcast System,” the
statement added.
Coloma said the collaboration with DOST, which
gave PTV savings from its 2015 capital expenditure of
P892 million, would extend the government’s reach to
the public.
“The government will be able to connect with our
bosses all over the Philippines through television and
online,” Coloma said. “This modernization allows our
station to provide quality programming and online
services to the people.”
In June, the House of Representatives has
approved on third and final reading a bill providing
free public wireless Internet access in all public spaces
across the country. The ICTO was tasked to provide
the Internet connectivity under the bill.
In 2013, President Benigno Aquino III signed
into law Republic Act No. 10390 or “An Act
Revitalizing the People’s Television Network.
An Inspired Choice:
Pope Francis appoints Cardinal
Tagle to another Vatican post
MANILA Archbishop Luis Antonio Cardinal Tagle was appointed by
Pope Francis as a member of the Pontifical Council “Cor Unum,”
which is in charge of the charitable activities of the Roman Catholic
Church worldwide.
Cor Unum,
instituted by Pope
Paul VI in 1971, is
part of the Vatican
curia. Its mission
expresses “care
of the Catholic
Church for the
needy, thereby
encouraging
human fellowship
and making
manifest the charity
of Christ.”
Tagle’s appointment to Cor Unum came after he was elected as
the first Asian president of Caritas Internationalis, a confederation of
130 Catholic relief, development and social service organizations in
over 200 countries and territories.
According to a report by CBCP News, Cor Unum helped the
Philippines during the aftermath of Super Typhoon “Yolanda”
(international name: Haiyan) and the construction of the Pope
Francis Center in Palo, Leyte.
JANE EVASIVE ABOUT STATUS
JANE Oineza turned 19 last July 22 so everyone sang ‘Happy Birthday’
for her at the thanksgiving presscon of her soap, “Nasaan Ka nang
Kailangan Kita” last Friday. Jane is from Bani, Pangasinan and started
as a child actress when she was only 4 years old in “Sa Dulo ng Walang
Hanggan” in 2003. She then joined the cast of “Goin’ Bulilit” and “Kung
Fu Kids”, winning best actress awards for her performance of a rape victim
in “Maalaala Mo Kaya”. As a teenager, she was introduced as a part of Star
Magic 2013. What’s her birthday wish?
“More blessings and projects to come,” she says. “Right now, ang dami
ng blessings so thank you kay Lord. Hayan, na-extend ang ‘Nasaan Ka’
and we’re now on our third season. This is my first major soap na kasama
pa ang picture at name ko sa poster kaya I’m so happy na minahal ng
viewers ang aming show. Sana mas tumaas pa ang ratings namin para mas
tumagal pa kami on the air. Tapos, I have a new movie, ‘The Love Affair’,
na gumaganap ako bilang anak nina Richard Gomez and Dawn Zulueta.
Kasama rin si Bea Alonzo. Being able to work with them is really such a big
blessing. Sana maging hit ang movie namin.”
In “Nasaan Ka”, her character, Corinne, gets pregnant and she and her
partner, Jerome Ponce, become teenage parents. “Marami pang pagsubok
ang pagdaraanan ng character ko sa pagiging teenaged mother. Sana, sa
mga kabataang makakapanood nito, may makuha silang lesson kay Corinne
dahil hindi biro maka-experience ng teenage pregnancy.”
With regard to her rumored romance with cager Jerome Teng, Jane
remains evasive. “Kung anuman ang nangyayari sa amin, all I can say is we
just enjoy whatever we have now. In the right time, malalaman naman ng
public kung ano ‘yun.”
Obviously, she doesn’t want to admit it as of now as it might affect her
loveteam with Jerome Ponce adversely.
AUGUST 2015
Derek Ramsay avoids having ‘dad bod’
Julie Anne San Jose explains weight loss
Get a dad bod all you want, but
Derek Ramsay would like to keep
his chiseled body like a Greek god.
“If guys find it to be the in thing
and women like it, by all means,” he
said when Bulletin Entertainment
asked about losing his women fan
base to dad bods. “But for me, it’s
not healthy, so I wouldn’t go for it.”
The 38-year-old actor-athlete,
he himself a dad, furthered, “I don’t
keep this body to look hot. I keep
this body so that I can perform the
stuff that I like to do.”
Quoting Mackenzie Pearson, an
American college sophomore who
essayed about this average body
type, “The dad bod is a nice balance
between a beer gut and working out.
The dad bod says, “I go to the gym
occasionally, but I also drink heavily
on the weekends and enjoy eating
eight slices of pizza at a time.”
The latest craze seemed to be a
great boost to a lot of, well, dads,
who have been struggling to keep
up with men like Derek in the
body department. The popular essay
concluded that in contrast to popular belief that favors hunky guys,
women tend to root for this type
because it doesn’t intimidate them.
Judging from his active lifestyle,
the Kapatid actor is far from being
replaced as women’s favorite eye
candy. He maintains multiple sports
and makes sure he stays away from
typical men’s vices – except for
drinking, which he grew up doing
because of ”cultural” influences.
“I come from the Philippines and
England where there’s both drinking culture. My dad taught me at a
young age about alcohol so that I
could treat it properly and not exceed (limit). So I’m very responsible
with the way I drink,” he said.
Derek endorses Tanduay, a global
Pinoy brand that has been around
for 160 years now.
The Filipino-British star, meanwhile, shrugged off the elite tag
when asked about his latest hosting
duties on TV5. Derek and other
Kapatid stars have left the comforts
of air-conditioned studios for their
latest Sunday variety show “Truck
Ng Bayan.”
The outdoor hosting duties never
bothered the actor, saying the show
actually gives a glimpse into his
often overlooked side.
“That’s actually me. That’s not a
different me. I’m enjoying my time
there and you can see it. When I’m
out there, I’m hugging the people.
I’m having a great time. Hindi
ako takot sa araw. Kita niyo ’yung
kulay ko. I love to be outdoors.” He
added, “It’s a nice way to find out
who your viewers are and to give
back to them.”
Derek has become very comfortable with the show that he’s causing
the network some trouble, he
quipped.
“I think TV5 is struggling kasi
tatlong beses ko na napili ’yung
jackpot so bawal na yata ako mamili
kung nasan ’yung jackpot.”
He concluded, “For me, it’s good
to see them win the jackpot. Hindi
trabaho ’yun. Ang saya.”
Julie explains weight
loss
JULIE Anne San Jose is more
identified with Elmo Magalona
while Jake Vargas, with Bea Binene.
They’re now paired for the first
time in “Buena Familia”. What do
JuliElmo and JaBea fans have to say
about this?”Wala namang violent
reaction so far,” says Julie Anne.
L. M. Confidential
“Alam naman nilang trabaho lang
ito, e. At saka kami na rin naman
ni Jake ang magkapareha sa ‘Pepito
Manaloto’ tuwing weekend, so it’s
not really something new.”
So how is it working with
Jake? “Si Jake kasi, hindi masalita.
Tahimik lang. Buti na lang at pareho kaming kumakanta, mahilig sa
music, so nakakapag-bonding kami
about that during taping breaks.
Pareho rin kaming naggigitara.”
What can she say about bashers who claim she’s now anorexic
after losing so much weight? “Ang
hirap naman kasi noong mataba
ako, bina-bash ako. Ngayong nagdiet ako’t nag-exercise, bina-bash
pa rin ako. Basta hindi ako anorexic. Kumakain naman ako. ‘Yung
tamang pagkain. At hindi ko naman
sinusuka ‘yung pagkain like anorexics do.
Basta I feel good and healthy,
energized lagi.”
How does she feel that
“Sunday All Stars” will have its last
telecast soon? “Siyempre, malungkot
kaming lahat ng mga kasama ko.
Kasi sanay na kaming nagkikita-kita
tuwing Sunday. Mami-miss namin
ang maganda naming samahan
doon and the weekly production
numbers that we do. Pero kasama
rin naman ako sa papalit na show,
‘Sunday Pinas Saya’, kaya may work
pa rin ako kung Sunday na iba naman ang mga makakasama ko.”
In “Buena Familia”, Julie
Anne plays Darling, an aspiring
singer. She works as an assistant to
a famous singer, Aicelle Santos as
Olga, who maltreats her. Jake plays
Kevin, a young composer who tries
to help her as she tries her luck in
the music industry.
11
Philippines
Comelec can’t afford delays for 2016
A return to manual election is out of the question
MANILA - The Commission
on Elections (Comelec) said it
cannot afford any more delays in its
preparations for the 2016 elections.
Comelec chairman Andres
Bautista said the first two weeks of
August would be crucial for the poll
body.
Any further delays, he said, would
have an impact on how they would
conduct the elections in a credible
manner.
“In an automated setting, it
takes time to manufacture the
machines, it takes time to refurbish
the machines, it takes time to have
the source code certified. Maraming
kailangang gawin so it would materially
impact the way we would conduct the
elections in 2016,” Bautista said.
The Comelec initially set the end
of July to issue a notice to proceed
to the winning bidder of either the
refurbishment or lease purchase contract
for the precinct count optical scan
(PCOS) machines.
Going beyond that time frame would
render the automation timeline dead,
then acting chairman Christian Robert
Lim told the Committee on Suffrage
during a congressional hearing last May.
One failed bidding and several
petitions to the Supreme Court (SC)
later, the Comelec is far from issuing any
notice to proceed, much less deciding
which of the two tracks it will pursue for
2016.
The poll body has readjusted its
timeline to accommodate a second round
of bidding for the refurbishment of
machines, with the opening of financial
bids scheduled on August 1.
The Special Bids and Awards
Committee, meanwhile, is still
conducting a post qualification for the
bids submitted
for the lease
purchase of
70,000 new
PCOS machines
and is set to
submit their
recommendation
to the en banc
by the end of the
week.
However, a
petition asking
the high court to
stop the parallel
bidding hangs
over the poll body.
The en banc has appointed
Commissioner Al Parreno to come up
with a backup plan should the high court
grant the petition.
But though he admits that such
decision could derail their preparations
for automation, Bautista said they will
not resort to going back to manual
elections. “Ang utos ng batas is we have
to have automated elections. Kami we
are set in following the law. We have to
conduct automated elections,” Bautista
said.
Philippines
NEWS
Smuggling ring’s
take: P100b
The operation of the “high-level
syndicate” in the Bureau of Customs
smuggling P20-billion worth of
meat, poultry and rice products a
year is continuing under the Aquino
administration, resulting in P100 billion
worth of lost revenue in the past five
years, Rep. Nicanor Briones told dzBB
radio on Sunday.
He said Customs Deputy
Commissioner Jessie Dellosa, head of the
bureau’s intelligence group, had already
reported to President Benigno Aquino
III the rampant corruption at Customs.
He said Dellosa had informed Aquino
that the syndicate involved “highranking officials” in the bureau who were
colluding with smugglers.
“The syndicate involves the highest
officials in the [Bureau of Customs],”
Briones said.
“That’s why it’s called the Tara system.
No inspections—and very high officials
are involved. No one was admitting
that the syndicate existed until Deputy
Commissioner Dellosa made an
admission that the tara system was still
in place.”
Briones said the syndicate was earning
P140,000 per container van under the
tara system in which no van was being
inspected.
He said some 20 container vans of
meat products alone were being smuggled
into the country every day, or a total of
7,300 vans a year with the bribe money
reaching up to P1.02 billion a year for the
syndicate.
“Every container van that is being
smuggled into the country has
undeclared or undervalued products
worth P1 million,” Briones said.
“So it is easy for the smugglers to shell
out the P140,000 in bribes to Customs
officials to ensure the vans will not be
opened and subjected to inspection.”
Briones said some P8 billion in
revenues were being lost each year due to
smuggled meat products alone.
That was on top of the technical
smuggling of rice amounting to P12
billion a year, bringing the total amount
of smuggled meat and rice products to
P20 billion a year, he said.
Briones said the technical smugglers
were not paying the right tariff of 40
percent especially if outside of the
minimum access volume.
By declaring the products as farm tools
and farm equipment, the smuggled rice
was only being levied five percent instead
of the right tariff of 40 percent.
Briones said the smugglers had become
so bold that they were no longer shipping
products in container vans but in the
whole ship.
Darren Espanto in the City
FIRST, Candy Crush poses with Darren Espanto. SECOND, Darren Espanto poses with Britney Waito THIRD, Shy Garrido, Darren Espanto, Katharine
Reyes, and Grace Maravilla Datu pose backstage.
12
L. M. Confidential
The big three
of the new
generation
Daniel Padilla, Enrique Gil and James
Reid are today’s hottest young actors.
But they would not achieve their status
now without mentioning their respective
partners. Dahil tinatangkilik ang kanikanilang loveteam.
Obviously, the tandem of Daniel and
Kathryn Bernardo leads the pack.
They have already proved their
bankability both in the movies and
television. At ngayon, hit na hit ang
kanilang teleseryeng “Pangako sa ‘Yo.”
Minus Kathryn, Daniel is doing well with his
solo projects like his endorsements and
concerts. Kaya subok na rin ang kanyang
kasikatan.
As for Enrique, it was only recently that
he hit j
ackpot through the phenomenal success
of “Forevermore” with Liza Soberano. Muli
nilang napatunayan na hindi lang sila
overnight sensation nang pumatok ang
kanilang movie na “Just The Way You Are.”
Umpisa pa lang ito ng success ni Enrique.
But definitely, he’s one of ABS-CBN’s prized
talents.
James, on the other hand, has zoomed
up sans media hype. Dahil sadyang
tinatangkilik ng fans ang loveteam nila ni
Nadine Lustre. Patunay na may following
ang JaDine. Pero sa ngayon, dependent
pa rin ang kanyang kasikatan sa loveteam
nila ni Nadine. Let’s see if his star as a solo
artist shines brighter once the first-ever
JaDine-starrer teleserye “On the Wings of
Love” hits the small screen.
As they say, walang forever. Sino kaya
kina Daniel, Enrique at James ang unang
mananawa sa showbiz? Just asking…
DIEGO READY FOR BIG
BREAK
DIEGO Loyzaga slowly proves that he
rightfully belongs to showbiz.
Acting runs in his blood being the son
of Cesar Montano and Teresa Loyzaga.
Kaya obvious na may pinagmanahan ang
binata.
Kuwento ng isang kaibigan, sikat na raw
sana si Diego ngayon kung hindi lang siya
naging reluctant sa pagpasok sa showbiz
noong 2011. If memory serves me right,
his dad Cesar wanted him to finish his
schooling first just like any parent’s wish.
Kaya naman pansamantalang tumigil sa
showbiz para tapusin ang kanyang high
school. But showbiz seems to be his calling.
Una siyang nabigyan ng break sa
remake ng teleseryeng “Mara Clara.”Pero
mas higit siyang nakilala sa Forevermore
na pinagbidahan nina Liza Soberano
at Enrique Gil. At ngayon, kasama siya
sa “Pangako
Sa ‘Yo.” Malaki ang
improvement sa acting ni Diego dito. Dahil
sa kanyang ipinapakitang performance,
mukhang handa na si Diego sa mga bida
role. Aside from acting, he’s one of MYX’s
three new VJs introduced last January.
Is Diego the next big thing in showbiz?
Just asking…
AUGUST 2015
LJ Reyes, kinum- SPOTLIGHT; Audrey
Bushell
pirmang sila na Lyn
Audrey Lyn Bushell was recently crowned as 1st runnerin the Philippine Canadian Charitable Founni Paolo Contis? u p
dation’s Miss Philippines Canada 2015
Nagtapos na ang afternoon drama na Yagit.
Mami-miss man ni LJ Reyes ang mga nakasama niya
sa programa ay tila masaya naman ito dahil sa napapabalitang relasyon niya sa kanyang co-star na si Paolo
Contis.
“[’Yung] mga bata. Nakaka-miss din kasi. Kahit sa
bahay kunwari walang bata, ‘di ba hahanap-hanapin mo,”
ani LJ sa panayam ng 24 Oras.
In a relationship na nga ba ang hot momma at si
Paolo? “Ay, hindi ko alam,” ang natatawang sagot ng
aktres.
“Kilala ko naman si Pao ever since eh. Tingnan natin, abangan natin sa mga susunod na araw, o buwan,
taon. Tingnan natin ‘yan. We’ll see, we’ll see,” dagdag
din niya. Hindi man ito kinumpirma o tinanggi
ni LJ ay tila nagpahiwatig naman siya. Wika niya,
“Baka naman sabi ni Lord, ‘O okay, tapos ka na.
Nakapag-concentrate ka na sa Yagit. Baka puwede
na akong magpadala.’” Masaya rin si LJ sa pagbahagi
ng naging karanasan niya sa ika-50 na Karlovy Vary
International Film Festival sa Czech Republic. Mainit
daw ang naging pagtanggap sa kanila na kumatawan
sa pinagbidahan niyang indie film na Anino sa
Likod ng Buwan.
“After ipalabas ‘yung film, merong Q&A.
Talagang ma-fi-feel mo na ‘yung kahit hindi siya
‘yung nagtanong, ‘yung ibang audience kapag
sumasagot ka talagang nakatingin sila. Talagang
they’re listening very intently,” pahayag nito.
Elle Delizo performs at the PIDC pageant.
ac-
Pageant during the recently held Pinoy
Fiesta & Trade Show at the Metro-Toronto
Convention Centre.
Multi-faceted Audrey is a singer, dancer,
tress and a model. She is also an active
youth leader who has worked with
MP Patrick Brown in Barrie, Ontario. She graduated from the
Royal Conservatory of
Music with Honours. She
has received numerous
singing awards and has
performed as a dancer and
a choreographer all over
Ontario. She has played the
lead role in YTV Film’s ‘King of
the Camp’ and musical productions like ‘Footloose’ and ‘Come
Together’.
Audrey is excited about her
new role as PCCF’s ambassador
in their charitable undertakings!
ABOVE, Senator Enverga (2ND FROM RIGHT) was pleased to lend his
support to Father Gilbert Talabong (2ND FROM LEFT) of Mauban, Quezon
Province in the Philippines. Also in photo is Rosemer Enverga and FV Foods’
Mel Galeon.
BELOW, Manny Yanga of Scarborough Toyota, Senator Enverga and wife
Rosemer, Dr. Solon Guzman, MP Joe Oliver, unidentified person, and
PCCF’s Romy rafael pose at the Pinoy Fiesta festival.
ANDRE GOT CLOSER TO BARBIE IN TOKYO
Andre Paras had a great time taping for his afternoon prime series, The Half Sisters, in Tokyo, Japan for a week.
It is said that it is doubly memorable for Andre as it was when he became closer to his leading lady, Barbie
Forteza. “It was fun,” Andre shares. “Nagkaligaw-ligaw kami sa kasa-shopping. And
I’m happy that my first time in Japan was with the people I love to be with.”
His father Benjie Paras accompanied him for this trip. Andre said that it was
hilarious working with his dad Benjie, who had a cameo role in the series, since “he
just keeps on making everyone laugh.” Andre also revealed that he has a lot of
unforgettable memories but he treasures his scenes with Barbie the most. “The
most memorable scene for me is when I was with Barbie because it really shows how
close we are in the story,” reveals Andre.
Maybe, some scenes will reveal how close they are now. The Half Sisters airs
after Eat Bulaga on GMA.
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AUGUST 2015
L. M. Confidential
13
Philippine
Happy hour at any hour with
family & friends
Real score
between Angeline & Erik
Dubbed the King and Queen of Theme Songs, Angeline Quinto and Erik Santos are gossip fodder anew
with wags alleging they’re in a relationship.
That the two were being seen together constantly
only added fuel to the fire.
“Alam ko halos lahat ganu’n ang sinasabi pero kasi
sa amin wala naman po talaga kaming aaminin. Kung
sakali man maging kami, hindi naman namin itatago
’yun,” Angeline said.
Erik, on his part, added, “Kasi ang hirap bigyan
ng label kung ano ’yung meron kami eh. Pero sabi
ko nga, kung hindi talaga kami, hindi. Kasi hindi
naman talaga eh. Ayaw naman namin i-mislead ’yung
mga tao na hindi naman talaga kami tapos sasabihin
namin kami.”
Vague as that may be, Erik brings more confusion
to the table divulging how they often exchange “I
love yous.”
Erik further revealed that when he says “I love
you” to Angeline, her answer would be “I love you
more.”
It is then he said, he would reply with, “I love you
to infinity.”
Angeline goes on to share how Erik loves being
treated like a baby.
“Lalo na ’pag ’yung nasa ibang bansa kami, mahilig
siyang magpa-baby na tipong, ‘Bili mo ako nu’n,’
ganu’n.”
Erik was quick to justify his actions, saying, “Kasi
sa mga relasyon naman ’di ba may mga pagkakataon
talaga na darating kayo sa stage na kahit matanda
na kayo, nagpapa-baby pa din. Lalo na kung kayong
dalawa lang.”
They don’t deny going out on dates, with Angeline
admitting, “Kapag wala siyang schedule kinukulit ko
siya eh, yayayain ko siya. Or minsan pupunta ako sa
bahay nila, (para) magluto kasi mahilig talaga akong
magluto. Natutunan ko sa tatay ko.”
Erik maintained Angeline’s culinary skills are
exceptional, saying, “Sobrang sarap niya magluto lalo
na ’yung kare-kare.”
More than just being a good cook, Erik also love it
that Angeline is a natural clown.
He shared, “Sobra niya akong napapatawa at napapasaya, in all aspects. Alam mo ’yun, kahit hindi niya
sinasadyang patawanin ako, pero natatawa ako.”
Sounds very much like two people in love, doesn’t
it? Well, yes and no.
“Basta kung ano man po ’yung meron kami
ngayon, sobra po kaming masaya. Alam niyo naman,
sweet lang talaga ako,” Angeline said.
She added, “Actually, ako naghihintay lang siguro
talaga ako ng tamang panahon para masabi ko kay
Erik na kami na talaga.”
Well, if ever, will it immediately lead to the altar?
Not quite, said Erik. “For me, wala pa ako du’n sa
pag-aasawa kasi sobra kaming nag-e-enjoy sa kung
anong meron kami ngayon. Pero siyempre hindi ko
rin naman ikakaila o maitatanggi na I’m of legal
age already ’di ba? Pero siyempre dapat it’s a mutual
decision.”
He even pointed to Angeline still needing to
achieve lots in her young career. “Siyempre marami
pang gustong gawin si Angeline, lalo na sa career niya
at sa pamilya niya, so naiintindihan ko ’yun.”
All that said, Erik and Angeline are both quite
busy preparing for their Cornerstone Concerts-produced show at the Araneta Coliseum on Aug 15.
“Sobra naming pinaghahandaan ’yung pagtatanghal namin,” Erik crowed.
“Isang blessing ito, isang dream na natupad para
sa akin. Lalo pa at kasama sa repertoire namin ’yung
mga espesyal na kanta sa buhay ko,” Angeline said.
Their special guests at the concert are Martin
Nievera and Regine Velasquez-Alcasid.
“Hindi pa nabubuo ’yung konsepto nu’ng concert,
talagang sila na ’yung nasa isip namin. And buti
nalang we’re very thankful, sobra po kaming blessed
na pinaunlakan nila kami,” said Erik.
While Angeline is excited for the concert, she
admitted that she is having the jitters this early.
“Hindi naman siguro mawawala ’yung nerbiyos at
kaba, kasi ako ’yung tipong tao na kahit ang dami
ko ng nakantahan sa buong buhay ko, hindi talaga
nawawala ’yung kaba ko.”
Good thing that Erik is there to prop her up. “Ako,
lagi ko lang sinasabi sa kanya na, ‘kaya mo yan.’ Kasi
hindi naman ibibigay sa’yo ’yang blessing na ’yan
kung hindi mo kaya.”
He added, “Sa totoo lang ’di na dapat siya kabahan eh kasi kapag nakita mo siya sobrang laki ng
improvement niya as performer compared before.
Actually magaling na talaga siya eh, pero ngayon,
doble-doble, triple-triple pa ’yung improvement niya.
Sobra.”
14
All vacations back home revolve around family, friend
It is hot.It is humid. It is scorching
hot and humid in the Philippines.
Budol-like dinner before
eating
This was my first impression when I went
home at the end of May for our family
reunion in Pampanga. We hold it every May
to coincide with the Philippine fiestas that
we remember when we were young. Sadly,
t
c
li
w
Cousins
Eunice,
Marie,
May and
Marie’s
son
Heaven
Budol-like dinner afterwards
Mae
Sazon
helps
with the
charity.
I wanted to buy this painting but it is part of the
decor of the showroom at Betis Crafts.
Ramon
Sazon
loads the
jeep with
the giveaways.
Froy Baking takes a bite out of a banana-Q
on the way up to Ditumabo Falls.
Charry help her mom and teacher with the
distribution.
Luth Esguerra
sits in one of
the intricate
“throne” produced by Betis
Crafts.
Chloe and Mae spin the “wh
Ifugao restaurant in Angeles
We went to the birthday party of my cousin Mayie’s husband Ric (MIDDLE
STANDING IN GREY SHIRT).
Annset Travel owner Fina Joven
speaks at the charity drive.
L. M. Confidential
AUGUST 2015
e Summer
Meg on Ellen’s success:
Pana-panahon lang ‘yan
ds, and always, food. And hot actress Angel Locsin.
the fiestas are not the same anymore. The
carnival is not on the same church grounds
ike they used to. They are located somewhere else. They have also lost their festive
atmosphere, their excitement. They have also
become smaller, with less crowd attending
SUMMER 2015
continued on page 9
Angel Locsin with Froy Baking
Food, food,
and more
food is what
a vacation is
all about.
Hermie Esguerra, with loyal
company (SAN MIGUIEL
BEER CAN) poses with an
old Beetle-turned- grill.
Raffelyn Pascual
returns the money
to Celle Baking.
Joseph Baking, sister Desa,
pose with Angel Locsin and
Chito Miranda
We ate at the Yellow Fin Grill in Baler where the
smoke came in by the window.
We ate at the Yellow Fin Grill in Baler where
the the grill is below the dining area.
heel of fortune” at Matam-ih.
s, Pampanga.
The trek up to Ditumabo Falls in Quezon is rough, rugged,
slippery and wet. Weat thick sandals. Only the guides can
wear slippers with ease. Get a guide. It’s worth it.
AUGUST 2015
This is the still-unspoiled beach in Zambales where I was not
able to come with my family (ABOVE).
L. M. Confidential
MEG Imperial is being bashed by some
writers who say she is “nilampaso at
napag-iwanan na” by Ellen Adarna. She
played the lead role in “Moon of Desire”
then, and Ellen was just supporting her.
But now, Ellen stars in the 6p.m. series
“Pasion de Amor” and is also the leading
lady of Coco Martin in the coming Star
Cinema Metro Manila Filmfest entry,
“Beauty and the Bestie”.
What can Meg say about this?
“I am happy for Ellen,” she says. “Masaya ako sa kung anuman ang narating
niya sa ngayon. Naging maganda ang
samahan namin noon when we were
working together, so I consider her as a
friend. Wala akong nararamdamang inggit kasi hindi naman ako pinababayaan
ng Viva, who’s managing me. Hayan nga,
may bago akong movie, ‘Chain Mail’,
with Nadine Lustre and Shy Carlos.
Kasama rin namin sina Mark Bautista,
Jackielou Blanco and John Regala. It’s
about the horrifying things that happen
when someone breaks a mysterious chain
mail sa internet.”
She’s confident that her career will get
better with Viva helping her. “I believe na
talagang ganun lang naman sa showbiz. Pana-panahon kung marami kang
trabaho o wala. Also, mas nauna naman si
Ellen sa akin so she surely deserves ‘yung
magagandang nangyayari sa career niya
ngayon kasi, she’s also very sexy and very
daring. But I believe na darating din naman ‘yung time ko. The important thing
is hindi ako nawawalan ng trabaho as of
now. At sige-sige rin lang ako in trying to improve my craft and myself para
pag- dumating yung bagong opportunity
from ABS-CBN, ready ako anytime na
humarap sa kamera.”
Meg just appeared recently at FHM
Sexiest Woman affair in SMX MOA
and she was well-applauded when she
appeared on stage.
WHAT JENNYLYN
AND DENNIS ARE
AFRAID OF
JENNYLYN Mercado and Dennis
Trillo both won’t admit as of now that
they have officially reconciled, but the
people around them say their actions
certainly speak louder than their words.
They’re now taping “My Faithful Husband” and there’s no denying that they’re
really sweet and attentive to each other
on the set.
Some folks say they’re hesitant to
admit that they’ve let bygone be bygones
for them since before, they both declared
na “wala silang binabalikan sa kanilang
past relationships”. They’re now afraid
they might be accused of eating their
own words.
But if ever they’d eventually admit
that they’re on again, they wouldn’t be
the first showbiz couple who broke up
then got together again. Before them,
there was Luis Manzano and Angel
Locsin, followed by JM de Guzman and
Jessy Mendiola. Both couples split then,
after some time, patched things up and
were back in each other’s arms to show
that love is indeed lovelier the second
time around. And we surely hope that,
for all of them, it will be really for good
and forever this time.
15
Filipino Picnic Day - Milton
Victoria Park in Milton is a quiet little park in the fast-growing city of Milton. But for one Saturday every
summer, it becomes a place for Filipinos to hang together and enjoy the program of the day’s festivites. The
picnic, now on it’s 3rd year of festivity, was founded by Dr. Solon Guzman as a way for Filipinos to get together and enjoy the summer. This year, they ahve been lucky to be blessed by good weather. I hear everyone
was saying that it was hot. Be thankful. At least you did not get get a non-stop day-long rain like Kalayaan
where the day’s programs were washed-out.
Milton Mayor Gordon Krantz, MPP (Halton) Indira Naidoo-Harris,
and Dr. Solon Guzman holds signs of support for Canadian PanAm
athletes.
Hawaiian dance is performed by Siony’s students
like Princess Guzman (FAR RIGHT) and others.
Jenna Protacio co-hosts
the festival.
Atin ito’s Eddie and Marita Lee.
Alma Torreno does
the zumba.
Milton Taekwondo demonstration
Dr. Josephine Adorna Guzman (RIGHT) poses with
a friend.
People line up for the delicious food.
Milton Mayor Gordon Krantz, MPP (Halton) Indira Naidoo-Harris, and Dr. Solon Guzman pose with sponsors.
Angeline Guzman (RIGHT) gets some ice
cream.
Beautiful volunteers
Caren Menchavez and Dr. Solon Guzman
accepts the plaque from MPP Indira NaidooHarris.PHOTO-NOLI GUMAPAC
ABOVE LEFT, Princess Guzman is the last runner in her
winning team of the egg race. RIGHT, A girl performs the
Hawaiian. BELOW, Milton Mayor Gordon Krantz, MPP
(Halton) Indira Naidoo-Harris, and Dr. Solon Guzman pose
with volunteers.
Caren Menchavez and Dr. Solon Guzman pose with the volunteers.
PHOTO-NOLI GUMAPAC
16
L. M. Confidential
AUGUST 2015
4ens Photography
PHOTO & VIDEO
4ensphotography.com
416-388-2171 • 416-388-2070
Professional Photo & Video
Weddings, Debuts, Fashion & Other Events
PH may need more warships,
fighter jets
MANILA - The Philippine government may have to allot more funds to
the military if the International Tribunal for the Law of the Sea does not
rule in Manila’s favor in its maritime
case against China, Supreme Court Senior Associate Justice Antonio Carpio
said .
Carpio said the Armed Forces must
be prepared if the United Nations
tribunal says it doesn’t have jurisdiction
over the West Philippine Sea dispute.
“What will happen?” he asked
military officials in the forum. “The
only way we can protect ourselves is to
acquire warships, warplanes, anti-ship
missiles.” Carpio, however, said the
Philippines, on its own, will not win in
a shooting war with China.
“No matter how many warships we’d
buy, we cannot defeat China. We can
only hope to deter China, but there is
no way we can win in a total war,” said
Carpio. “So it’s totally useless if the tribunal says there is no jurisdiction, the
nine-dashed line prevailed, then there
is no law of the sea anymore. Every
nation will have to arm itself but that’s
not enough to resolve the dispute.”
He said the Philippines’ case and
the UN tribunal’s decision will have
a global impact, particularly on the
United Nations Convention for the
Law of the Sea (UNCLOS).
He said if the tribunal rules in
favor of China, “it will just worsen the
dispute and the judges in the tribunal
will be out of job because nobody will
follow the law of the sea anymore.”
“Why is it important to apply
UNCLOS to the South China Sea
dispute? Because if we don’t apply it,
then UNCLOS – the constitution for
the ocean and seas of our planet - cannot also apply to any maritime dispute
in the rest of the oceans and seas of the
world,” he explained. “It would be the
beginning of the end of UNCLOS. The
rule of the naval canon will prevail in
the ocean and seas, no longer the rule
of law. There will be a naval arms race
among coastal countries,” Carpio said.
The Philippines is expecting the tribunal to decide on the jurisdiction over
the case either in August or September.
17 REEFS DESTROYED
During the forum, Carpio revealed
that China destroyed a total of 16 reefs
in the disputed waters.
“China has damaged 10 other
reefs for filling material for the seven
reefs (where it built seven man-made
islands). They actually destroyed a total
of 17 reefs,” he said.
Navy civil military operations group
chief Col. Edgar Arevalo, who also
spoke during the forum, said Chinese
work on the artificial islands were
ongoing as of May 28.
“I don’t have any information
whether its going on but so far that was
reported during the routine patrol that
we took (last May 28),” he said.
He added that Chinese maritime
forces have harassed at least 6 Philippine missions to resupply military
forces in the West Philippine Sea since
last years.
New PNP chief Marquez fed up with
‘palibhasa pulis’
TWO NEW
DIFFERENT
LOVE STORIES
MANILA – Faced with the task of fighting crimes while looking
out for erring policemen, newly installed Philippine National Police (PNP) chief Ricardo Marquez immediately laid down his plans
for a better police
organization.
In his speech at
the turnover ceremony in Camp
Crame, Marquez
said the PNP
must go back to
the basics of policing, including the
implementation
of programs for
police presence
and patrolling the
community.
Marquez ordered the dispersal of personnel based on a well-developed patrol plan. He said the police force must show the public
that their “Kuyang” and “Ate” police are patrolling the streets.
He added he would focus on proper licensing policies for
firearms. He ordered the PNP Directorate for Operations and the
Civil Security Group to develop a decentralized system for licensing of firearms.
Marquez also stressed the need for a system of accurate crime
incident reporting and solution.
TWO new shows starring reel and
real life loveteams
are being prepared
by ABS-CBN now.
First is “Be My
Lady” starring the
overly
saccharine
and
inseparable
sweethearts Erich Gonzales and Daniel
Matsunaga. Second is “The Story of
Us” starring Kim Chiu and Xian Lim.
“Be My Lady” is quite interesting as
it also stars the former and current wife
of John Estrada, Janice de Belen and
former Miss Earth
Priscilla Meirelles.
The two women
know that they will
co-star with each
other and it’s just fine
with them.
Janice will play
Erich’s mother while
Priscilla will be the auntie of Daniel.
Both Priscilla and Daniel are Brazilians.
This is the first time Priscilla will try
acting in a Kapamilya soap. Prior to this,
she was a contestant in TV5’s “Celebrity
Dance Battle” and in “Eat Bulaga’s”
Ballroom Pa More”.
In “The Story of Us”, the senior
co-stars of Kim and Xian are Zsa Zsa
Padilla and Aiko Melendez. Being
given a big break in this soap is singer
Bryan Santos of the boy band Harana,
who will be Xian’s rival over Kim. This
will be under the direction of Mae Cruz
Alviar, who directed the Kim-Xi love
team in the movies “Bride for Rent” and
“Past Tense”.
LAMBAT SIBAT
He lauded the implementation of ‘’Oplan Lambat Sibat’’ which,
he said, has been producing results and making breakthroughs in
crime fighting.
‘’As a result, the validated weekly robbery/theft figures in Metro
Manila are currently at 308, down from a high baseline figure of
794 a year ago,’’ Marquez said.
‘’Likewise, murder and homicide cases are also down to 21 from
a high of 30 during the same period.”
He said he would focus on auditing crime reporting and use data
AUGUST 2015
to identify crime hot spots, implement strategic checkpoints, foot
patrols, and go after known crime personalities.
He said because of Lambat Sibat, the brainchild of Interior
Secretary Mar Roxas, crimes are down. He added he would make
Lambat Sibat the Bible of crime fighting with priority to urban
centers.
Marquez also stressed the importance of the campaign against
illegal drugs and the need for an intensified a barangay-based antidrug campaign.
He also committed to achieve zero crime incidents during international events including the APEC meeting in November.
For the 2016 elections, he called on the PNP to remain nonpartisan, and prevent election-related violence.
INTERNAL AFFAIRS
Marquez added he would make meritocracy the hallmark of his
administration, where excellence will be rewarded.
‘’We will raise the bar for performance and accountability, so that
excellence is rewarded and mediocrity receives its just desserts,’’ he
said.
He ordered the PNP Directorate for Personnel and Records
Management to form a study group composed of representatives
from various sectors to work on a promotion system that is fair and
reliable.
Addressing misfits and scalawags, Marquez ordered a review of
disciplinary mechanisms. He also said the Internal Affairs Service
will be reinvented.
“Sa mga kapulisang matino at malinis ang hangaring maglingkod sa bayan, hindi ba kayo nagngi-ngitngi tuwing naririnig ninyo
yung pasaring na ‘palibhasa pulis’ kapag may nangongotong o
naghu-hulidap? Gaya ko, sawang-sawa na rin ba kayo sa ganitong
pananaw sa atin ng publiko?” he said.
‘’Sa buong kapulisan, let me make this very very clear: Do your
job well and you will be rewarded. If you are threatened or endangered in the line of duty, I will be there for you, walang iwanan.
But betray your oath and violate the law, sisiguraduhin kong may
kalalagyan kayo,’’ he said.
L. M. Confidential
17
Entertainment
ANDREA TORRES
Daring to be different
Andrea Torres landed number 2 to
Jennylyn Mercado in the FHM Sexiest
Woman Search.
But although she’s just the runner-up,
she was chosen by Summit Publications
of FHM to be the subject of a coffee table
book that will come out in September.
Does this mean FHM believes she’s really
the one who deserve the Sexiest woman
title?
“Hindi naman,” she says. “Pero nagulat
talaga ako when they offered me to do a
coffee table book. Natapos na ang aming
pictorial, kinunan mainly sa Tagaytay
with Jay Tablante as photographer. Mas
pasabog ito, more daring, sexier kaysa sa
nauna kong cover pictorial for FHM.”
She goes daring not only in the coffee
table book but in her role as an escort
girl-night club dancer in “Pari Koy”. We
visited her on the show’s set and she’s taping a dance number clad in a provocative
outfit in front of several male customers
in the scene that she is about to shoot.
“I had second thoughts kung tatanggapin ko ito kasi nga sanay ako sa lead
roles na inaapi ako. Tapos, dito, user ako
na peperahan ang father ni Dingdong
Dantes na si Spanky Manikan tapos may
sexy dance numbers pa. Baka hindi ko
magawa nang tama. But my manager,
Rams David, talked to me and told me na
maganda ang role, very challenging, kaya
ginawa ko. So ‘yung mga nanghinayang
na hindi ako rumampa sa FHM affair,
they can watch me here sa dance number
ko in ‘Pari
Koy’ dahil
pasabog
talaga ito.”
Andrea
has finished
all her scenes
in the Cambodian coproduction
she did with
Mikael Daez,
“Blood in
Dispute”. “Sa
August 7,
we are going
to Phnom
Penh, Cambodia para
sa theatrical
premiere
nito. It will
first be
shown there as a full length movie. Dito
sa atin, it’ll be shown as a mini-series.
Excited kami ni Mikael na mapanood ito
kasi maganda raw lumabas.”
Loisa, Joshua know their
priority
Loisa Andalio and Joshua Garcia were
discovered when they joined PBB All In
where Daniel Matsunaga emerged as the
winner. They figured in a love triangle
with Jane Oineza then, so they were all
included in the cast of “Nasaan Ka Nang
Kailangan Kita” which started airing last
January. Jane was later paired with Jerome
Ponce.
Loisa is 16 years old and Joshua is
17. Loisa used to be part of a singing
group called 3G and is the second in a
brood of four. Joshua is from Batangas
and for both of them, “Nasaan Ka” is their
first try at acting. “We’re so happy kasi
first time namin to act at naging successful,” says Joshua. “Noong una, talagang
hirap na hirap kami. In one scene, naka21 takes ako. But now, masaya na ako kasi
they say I’ve improved.”
“Nagpapasalamat kami sa mga
director namin at kasamang artista kasi
alam nilang hindi kami sanay sa acting
kaya tinutulungan nila kami,” says Loisa.
“Noong una, nakaka-pressure dahil ang
gagaling nila. Kapag nagagalit si Ate Vina
Morales, sa mata pa lang niya, natatakot
na ako. But she helped me a lot. Ginaguide niya ako sa scenes namin kaya very
thankful ako sa kanya.”
The series has just been extended so
they gave a thanksgiving presscon. They
staged thanksgiving shows in various
parts of the country and these are all well
attended. In the coming episodes, Loisa
as Bea develops a deeper relationship with
Joshua as Joel. Is it also the case for the
two of them in real life?
“Ay hindi po,” says Joshua. “Mas nagpo-focus po kami sa career namin. Sayang
naman ang opportunity na binibigay sa
amin kaya itong priority namin.”
Meantime, Jane as Corinne and
Jerome as Ryan face a new chapter in
their lives as they become young parents.
Vina as Cecilia has become wealthy and
it’s said a new character will enter her life
to be her romantic interest. Denise Laurel
as Toni continues to fight for her love for
Christian Bautista as Leandro. “Nasaan
Ka Nang Kailangan Kita” is seen weekdays at 3:15 p.m. after “Flordeliza”.
Aicelle taks about her contravida role
Aicelle Santos gained fame as a lead
actress for the hit musical on stage,”Rak
of Aegis”, which is now on its rerun at
PETA Theatres. Now, Aicelle tries playing the role of a kontrabida in GMA7’s
new afternoon soap, “Buena Familia”,
that starts airing tomorrow, Tuesday, after
“The Half Sisters”. She plays Olga, a top
singer who acts like a diva and oppresses
new singer Julie Anne San Jose who is
assigned to be her assistant. Their situation surely will remind you of Cherie Gil
and Sharon Cuneta in “Bituing Walang
Ningning”.
“When the role was offered to me, I
got excited,” says Aicelle. “Kaya ko bang
magkontrabida? First time ko, e, so I keep
on asking Direk Gil Tejada kung tama
ba ang ginagawa ko o baka kulang. Now,
I’m enjoying it. Si Cruella de Ville sa
‘101 Dalmatians’ ang peg ko rito. Natatakot lang ako sa fans ni Julie Anne at
baka magalit sila sa’kin sa pang-aapi ko
sa kanya. So pinauuna ko na po, trabaho
lang ito. Uma-acting lang po kami.”
In one scene, she asks Julie Anne:
“What’s your name?” Julie Anne replies:
“Darling po.” And she says: “Darling?
I cannot call you that. I call my friends
Darling and you are not my friend.” It
was a big hit with the writers who attended the show’s presscon. They say it
has the makings of Cherie Gil’s hit line:
“You’re nothing but a second rate trying
hard copy cat”.
Martin assures
Kylie he’s not
the one in nude
photo scandal
KYLIE Padilla can somehow identify with her
role in her new soap, “Buena Familia”, where
she plays Celine, the eldest child of Bobby
Andrews and Angelu de Leon. Bobby got
imprisoned in the story for a pyramid scam.
“Pareho sila ng tatay ko (Robin Padilla) na
nakulong,” says Kylie. “But in real life, I’m not
the eldest kasi si Ate Queenie ko ang eldest
sa amin. Also, in ‘Buena Familia’, it’ll turn out na
anak pala ako ni Tito Bobby sa other woman
niya, played by Sheryl Cruz, and Tita Angelu
has no inkling na tunay na anak ako ng husband niya sa ibang babae. Another similarity
is that sa ‘Buena Familia’, nagkawatak-watak
ang family namin. In real life, ganun din kami.
My mom at mga kapatid ko, nasa Australia.
May dad, married na dito to someone else,
while I’m living on my own.”
She confirms that she has broken up with
her last BF, Matt Henares, who’s now studying in Australia. “Wala akong lovelife but
my work makes me happy. Hindi naman ako
pinapabayaan ng GMA. I just did an episode
of ‘Wagas’ with Derrick Monasterio and now,
I’m so in love with ‘Buena Familia’. So, dun ko
na lang binubuhos ang lahat.”
Her leading man in “Buena Familia”, Martin del Rosario, who’s sitting beside her during
the show’s presscon, has declared in several
interviews that he has a big crush on her. Has
he told her about this?
“No, wala naman siyang sinasabi. Pero
kung totoo, ‘di thank you.” She then faces
Martin? “Manliligaw ka ba sa’kin?”
“Ilang beses ko na sinabi sa’yong ang
ganda mo, di ba?” says Martin.
So why don’t you tell him you love her?
another scribe asks Martin. “Love agad? Love
takes time. We need to get to know each
other munang mabuti.”
So what’s the chance of Martin? May
pag-asa ba? “Naku, don’t pressure us. Kasi
baka maging feeling awkward kami sa set. I
don’t like that to happen.”
Why is she hesitating? Is it because she
has seen Martin’s nude photo scandal? “No,
I haven’t. But we’ve talked about that and
sinabi naman niyang hindi siya ‘yun. Basta
ayokong isipin, ayokong pangunahan. Nagsisimula pa lang kaming mag-taping sa show, so
don’t force or rush us.”
Isn’t she somewhat envious that her Ate
Queenie is now married to a Muslim husband?
“No. Honestly, hindi ko priority ang lovelife
now kasi I’m discovering a lot new things
about myself. Pag may partner ka, the more
on siya lagi ang maiisip mo and I just want
to concentrate on myself now. Ang dami ko
pang gustong i-improve sa sarili ko at wish
kong mag-rate muna nang mataas ang ‘Buena
Familia’.”
Scenes in the City
FIRST, Toronto Mayor John Tory poses with Rosemer Enverga at Pinoy Fiesta. SECOND, Samantha Gavin poses with JayR. THIRD , Samantha gavin poses with Darren Espanto. FOURTH fans have their
picture taken with GMA star Heart Evangelista at Pinoy Fiesta.
18
L. M. Confidential
AUGUST 2015
Canada
Gladys S. Calderon
Licensed Travel Consultant
Worth
a Look
Eight-division world
champion
boxer, Manny
Pacquiao will
talk about hsi
career and how
religion helped
him.
Toronto, a City known for its diversity
and multiple interests, is the home of the
annual Gentlemen’s Expo, an event that
appeals to people who are into fashion,
technology, music, sports, cars, alcohol,
grooming, sex, food, entrepreneurship,
gaming, DIY and many more. In only
its third year, the Expo has managed to
attract some of the biggest names in business, sport, technology, music and culinary
arts. The Expo was conceptualized by two
men; one with a background in the financial industry and the other, an experienced
event planner. The two felt there was not
enough activities that catered to the needs,
wants and varied
interests of men.
This idea led
them to pursue
the formation of
a team that organized the event
full-time.
In its inaugural
year, the Gentlemen’s Expo had speakers such as Dragon’s
Den stars Jim Treliving and Bret Wilson
plus former UFC Light Heavyweight
Champion Jon Jones. The following year,
the expo took it up a notch with guests
such as former three-time UFC Welterweight Champion Georges St. Pierre,
barbecue aficionado and famed Food
Network star Rob Rainford and former
Toronto Maple Leaf Gary Roberts.
2015 promises to be even better with the
scheduled appearance by legendary pitcher
Mariano Rivera, one of baseball’s most
dominant closers. Its most interesting
guest, especially within the Filipino-Ca-
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Email: [email protected]
nadian community, is the announcement
of the first Canadian appearance of former eight-division world champion boxer,
Manny Pacquiao. Pacquiao has been a
coveted guest of many Filipino-Canadian
associations and organizations particularly
because of his unifying force in the community and the Philippines as a whole.
A select few can purchase tickets to
see Pacquaio be interviewed by Stephen
Brunt of Sportsnet. This gives Canadians
a rare opportunity to hear him speak live
to talk about his career; his rise from the
slums of the Philippines to eventually
garnering iconic sports status. He will
also be asked to discuss his political and
philanthropic work as well as how religion
has played a key role in his day-to-day
decision-making process.
In addition to seeing famous personalities, the Gentleman’s Expo promises to
offer its audience a glimpse of the best
brands, the best technology, new attractions, a how-to series, samples of a wide
variety of alcoholic beverages, a cooking
stage, sports simulators, fashion retailers, the gentlemen’s casino, “Start me Up
Sunday” for start up businesses, a sneaker
exhibit and retail area and many more.
Do not let the name of the event fool
you. The Gentlemen’s Expo is more about
the event being the personification of
what a gentleman is. It is not exclusively
for men since 30% of its audience are
women. Note that you have 19 year-ofage or older to attend and it is highly
recommended that you get your tickets
early.
For more detailed information including a list of all the vendors you will be
able to see, check their website at www.
gentlemensexpo.com
FOR RENT
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Large 1 and 2 bedroom suites. Renovated, hardwood,
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Call Jeff 416-931-2206 or Trinity at 416-256-2900 ext. 372
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Freshly painted, clean, Victoria Park Subway right at your door-minutes to
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great walking bike & walking paths
Call 416-931-2206 or
416-694-8186
AUGUST 2015
L. M. Confidential
19
Entertainment
Angelu, Bobby finally do
kissing scenes
TIDBITS
ANGELU de Leon and Bobby Andrews topbill GMA-7’s newest afternoon soap, “Buena Familia”, that
replaces “Yagit” starting this coming Monday. They play Bettina and Arthur Buena, a loving couple with four children:
Kylie Padilla as Celine, Julie Anne San Jose as Darling,
Julian Trono as Edwin and Mona Louise Rey as Faye. They
seem to be a perfect and happy family, until Bobby gets
involved in a pyramiding scam and is sent to prison.
We ask the younger stars who appear as their children if
they are aware of how popular the Angelu-Bobby loveteam
was when it flourished during the 90s and they became famous as Peachy and Joaquin in “TGIS” in 1995. After that,
they were doing one movie hit after another, like “Wala Na Bang Pag-ibig”, “Laging Naroon Ka”, “Ikaw na
Sana” and “Ang Lahat ng Ito’y Para sa Iyo”.
“Sorry po,” says Kylie. “I was abroad during that time. But I was told na naging very popular nga po
sila.” “Maliit pa ako noon but I know nakilala sila as Peachy and Wacks,” says Julie Anne. “Later, I saw
some of the movies they did on TV.”
“Ako rin, kilala ko sila as Peachy and Wacks,” says Julian. As for Mona, she was not even born yet at
that time.
So how do they feel that they’re together again? “Siyempre, nakakatuwa,” says Angelu, who’s turning 36 on
August 22. “Our love-team started exactly 20 years ago at ngayon, pang-throwback na lang kami kasi may
scenes kami rito sa ‘Buena Familia’ na nangyari in the 90s, which is exactly our era.”
“Pero malayo na ang itinakbo ng love-team namin,” says Bobby. “Noon, puro pa-cute lang kami.
Ngayon, more serious na. First time namin to play na mag-asawa. Kung dati, hanggang holding hands lang
kami. Ngayon, may kissing scenes na.”
Both Bobby and Angelu are now happily married. Bobby to Bienne Co and Angelu to Wowie Rivera.
Supporting them in “Buena Familia” are Sheryl Cruz as Bobby’s other woman who makes life hell for their
family, Tessie Tomas as Bobby’s matapobreng mother-in-law, Aicelle Santos as a top singer who oppresses
Julie Anne, Mayton Eugenio as Kylie’s best friend, and Martin del Rosario and Jake Vargas as the leading
men of Kylie and Julie Anne. “Buena Familia” is directed by Gil Tejada who’s happy to be working with
Angelu and Bobby again since they have worked before with Viva in the 90s.
Derek loves work
DEREK Ramsay is very happy that his first stint
in “Wattpad Presents” with Jasmine Curtis Smith,
“Unwanted Girlfriend”, is well received by viewers.
“The feedback is consistently good, very
encouraging, and we’re glad that they say maganda
ang chemistry namin ni Jasmine,” he says. “Our
episode is now on its second week. The first week was
light and happy, may pagka-comedy dahil sa hilarious
antics ni Jasmine as a girl who’s willing to look silly
in being my pretend girlfriend just because she’s so
in love with me. But this week, the story will take a
dramatic turn when it is discovered that Jasmine pala
has a serious heart ailment that has to be operated
on.”
Aside from acting in “Wattpad Presents”, Derek is
also having a good time being one of the hosts of
TV5’s Sunday noontime variety show, “Happy Truck
ng Bayan”.
“I’m enjoying it kasi it gives me the chance to visit
various places in Metro Manila where we stage it on
location. In so doing, I get to meet people from all
walks of life and connect with my fans everywhere.
You can see me hugging the people, having a great
time with them. It’s my way of giving back to the
viewers, lalo na nga three times ko nang nahulaan
correctly kung saan matatagpuan ang jackpot prize
namin. For me, hindi trabaho ‘yung ginagawa ko roon
kasi talagang sobrang saya.”
Tessie
accepts
son’s life as
gay
TESSIE Tomas gained fame
as a stand up comedian who
spoofs people like Imelda
Marcos and Miriam Santiago.
But now,
she’s
doing
more
drama
in soaps
like the
recent
“Once
Upon a Kiss” and the current
“Buena Familia”.
“Nami-miss ko nga magcomedy at gumawa ng sitcoms
pero dito ako nalilinya sa
drama ngayon, so okay lang,”
she says.
In “Buena Familia”, she
plays Angelu de Leon’s rich
mother who belittles her sonin-law, Bobby Andrews. “Kahit
nagdadrama ako, natatawa si
Angelu dahil pagkatapos ng
eksena, nagpa-punchline pa rin
ako nang nakakatawa.”
How’s her British husband?
“Nasa England ngayon si
Roger. 21 years na kaming
mag-asawa and we’re doing
okay. Sinasama nga ako, kaso
may trabaho naman ako rito.”
How about her son Robin?
“He’s doing well as a designer
in New York. May sarili na
siyang store called Tomas Pop
Up Store.”
Robin is now married in
a same-sex marriage and she
has always accepted his being
gay. “Early on, natanggap
ko na ‘yun kasi sa showbiz
naman, ang daming gays. Sa
halip na maghanap pa siya
ng acceptance sa ibang tao,
ako na ang unang tumanggap
sa kanya at hindi naman ako
nagkamali sa pagpapalaki sa
kanya dahil he grew up to be
a good, productive person.
‘Yung napangasawa niya also
comes from a good family at
may maganda ring trabaho so
happy ako for them.”
Golez fears China will back candidates in 2016
Statement assumes that all non-Liberal candidates may be China’s candidate
MANILA - Former Parañaque Rep. Roilo Golez
is concerned that China may back candidates
in the 2016 elections.
Golez said China backed candidates in the
US elections, and he hopes that won’t happen
in the 2016 elections in the country.
Ifugao Rep. Teddy Baguilat, for his part,
said China won’t back candidates of the
Liberal Party, noting the sour relationship
between Beijing and the Aquino administration
over the West Philippine Sea.
20
Golez belongs to the Movement and Alliance to Resist China’s Aggression, a network
of China’s critics in the Philippines. It held a
global day of protest against China on July
24.
The main protest was held in front of the
Chinese consular office in Makati. On the
same day, similar protests were held in Cainta,
Guam, Saipan and San Francisco.
There were also protest actions in Manila
and Cagayan de Oro July 25 and Paris July
26.
The group will also hold a social media
protest where people are encouraged to take
pictures with others while holding a banner
against China’s aggression and post it on
social media.
The schedule on July 24 was selected as it
marks the first anniversary of the establishment
of Sansha City, the local government unit that
China put up to administer the West Philippine
Sea
L. M. Confidential
PH is ‘US
fiancé
visa’
capital
Filipinos may have the
lowest US visitor visa
issuance rate among foreign
countries but not when it
comes to fiancé/fiancée visas.
At the recent national
immigration law conference
held in Washington, it was
interesting to discover that
the Philippines is considered
the fiancé visa capital of the
world.
This fact is supported
by figures published by
the Department of State’s
Bureau of Consular Affairs,
which indicates there were
8,525 Philippine nationals
petitioned by their US citizen
fiancés in 2014.
The Philippines is followed
by China and Mexico with
2,177 and 2,101 fiancé visas
issued for fiscal year 2014,
respectively.
There may be several
reasons for the steady
rise of issued fiancé visas
for Filipinos, such as an
increased population of
Filipinos in the United
States, the ease and ubiquity
of online dating services
and social media outlets, or
even the Philippines’ active
tourism campaign of “It’s
more fun in the Philippines,”
which attracted millions of
visitors may have spurred
many love connections. Most
plausible, however, are the
advantages in filing a fiancé
visa petition over a spousal
petition.
The fiancé visa is a
temporary nonimmigrant
visa. The expected processing
time is generally five to eight
months. This is relatively
faster than a spousal petition
(I-130) by a US citizen,
which can take up to one year
to process the immigrant visa.
Once the fiancé arrives
in the US, the couple must
marry within 90 days and file
an application for adjustment
of status for the “green card.”
Another advantage of the
fiancé visa is the inclusion of
derivative minor children. If
the fiancé has minor children
under the age of 21, the US
citizen does not need to file
separate petitions for the
ADVOCATES
continued from page 27
AUGUST 2015
People
a bar in Pampanga last week. His sudden
meltdown was caused, according to his
camp, by his being discriminated. Baron
was denied entry to a bar where he just
wanted to have some fun. Apparently,
the bar staff sensed that he will only
cause trouble. No question, they did the
right thing.
...are talking about
Angel Locsin’s controversial magazine
cover
UNO magazine has just named the
Kapamilya star the sexiest woman in
its own sexiest list. The result, which
compared blatantly Angel to FHM’s
sexiest woman, was easily picked
up by fans
with mixed
reaction upon
seeing
the
magazine
cover.
The
magazine was
successful in
its intention
to take the
spotlight away from FHM, no doubt.
Mark Neumann
Expectation was high when it was
announced that the young actor was
going to top bill the local adaptation
of the hit Korean series, The Baker
King. He got a lot of media attention,
too. But the excitement eventually died
down when the series started airing.
What has gone wrong? Everything!
Not to mention that Mark is just a flash
in the pan.
Yasmien’s role affects
her real life
Jodi Sta. Maria
Was it really her or just the character
she plays? Regardless, Jodi is definitely
a hot topic. Her return as Amor Powers
in Pangako Sa ‘Yo last Thursday
was momentous for the series. The
primetime drama registered its highest
ratings since its pilot telecast. Her
much-awaited return also trended
worldwide on Twitter.
Rhap Salazar
For the record, it was the young singer
who started blasting non-singers who
make a living out of lip-syncing. We
just hope he didn’t apologize for telling
the truth because his bold statement
triggered other professional singers
and other big names in the industry
to finally air their sentiments on
music being dominated by a bunch of
HARD TO GET OUT OF POPULAR
PARENTS’ SHADOWS
talentless singers. So, since everyone is
talking, what are we supposed to do
now?
...are NOT talking
about
JJennylyn Mercado
She may have topped FHM’s sexiest
poll this year
but a lot of
people seem
not so crazy
about it. At
the
annual
v i c t o r y
party of the
popular men’s
magazine, it
was evident
that audiences were not so excited
to see Jennylyn walk down the ramp.
Ironically, starlets who were not even
part of the top 10 got the loudest
cheers. Now basing on audience impact,
Jennylyn was not the star of the night.
Baron Geisler
The still troubled actor went ballistic in
AUGUST 2015
ROBIN
Nievera
parents’ shadow,
successful
big challenge
says.
“Next Atseum with
Karylle
for a
and
and
our
knows it’d be hard for him to get out of his more popular
Martin Nievera and Pops Fernandez. “It helps to have
parents to give you a good start in the business and the
for me now to show that I can make it on my own,” he
traction”, his recent one night concert at the Music Muthe children of other big stars like Paolo Valenciano,
and Isabella, was such a big hit it is now scheduled
two-night repeat on August 14 and 15.
“The first concert was initially for family members
friends. We were surprised so many people came
tickets were all sold out. We didn’t know we have
own audience of young people who go for our
kind of music.”
So, how was it performing with Paolo, Karylle
and Isabella? “It was a lot of fun. The stage was
designed to look like it’s someone’s living room
and we’re all
just jamming
together.
Very relaxed.
It helped
that we’ve known
other since childhood.
Paolo, we’ve been
video games
were kids.
no effort to
o n e another. We all
uted to make it a very good show and we’re happy the
appreciated our efforts.”
their parents present to support them? “Yes,
there. We called them to join us in the encore.
Stevie Wonder medley and the audience really
each
Kami
ni
playing
since we
So there’s
upstage
contribaudience
Were
they’re all
We sang a
loved it.”
Are
they hoping to stage it in a bigger venue, like the
Araneta
Coliseum? “Sana. Basta the important thing is there’s
something we’ll enjoy doing about it and it doesn’t appear to people like work, so
people can enjoy doing it with us.”
L. M. Confidential
YASMIEN Kurdi says that playing the
role of Dolores in the long-running
“Yagit” has affected her even in real life.
“Sobrang nadadala ko ‘yung character,”
she says. “Kahit binabasa ko pa lang
‘yung script, naaapektuhan na ako at
tumutulo na ang luha ko. Kung minsan
nga, sa eksena, hindi ko alam, umiiyak
na pala ako bilang ina ni Chlaui
Malayao as Elisa na ilang beses nang
na-kidnap.
Sa mga tagpo namang lumalaban si
Dolores sa mga nang-aapi sa kanya, like
si Bettina Carlos as Izel na isa sa mga
umaapi sa amin, inaaway ko talaga siya
nang totohanan. So there are times I
tell myself, teka, teka, let’s take a break.
Hinuhubad ko ‘yung character mula
sa consciousness ko. I have to separate
myself from her at iniiwanan ko muna
siya sa isang tabi.”
They all feel sad that “Yagit” will
have its conclusion this week. “Yes,
matatapos na kami on Friday after
almost one year on the air. Tiyak na
iyakan sa last taping day namin on
Wednesday dahil magpapaalaman
na kami at hindi na kami magkikita
regularly sa set like we’ve gotten used to
do. The serial ends na masaya kaming
lahat as we had a good successful
run. Maraming nakapansin sa color
schemes ng aming characters. Like ako,
laging naka-yellow, si LJ Reyes, nakared, si Raquel Villavicencio as Donya
Claudia, naka-violet, etc. Ang dami ring
nakapag-guest na ibang artista sa amin,
including Bea Binene, Kiko Estrada,
Nova Villa at marami pang iba. So we’ll
end na marami kaming good memories
about the show.”
Her daughter Ayesha Zara is now
two years old. When does she and her
husband Rey Soldevilla intend to have
a second baby? “As of now, wala kaming
plano. Ang hirap kasi, kahapon lang
kami nagkayaya. Nakuha namin from
Zamboanga kasi tagaroon ang husband
ko. We’ll wait munang lumaki-laki si
Ayesha bago namin sundan.”
Yasmien is one of two local
actresses who has a very good looking
non-showbiz husband. Another one
is Sunshine Dizon, whose hubby is
Timothy Tan. Both Rey and Timothy
can give some actors a run for their
money if they’d wish to join showbiz
also.
21
Entertainment
NO ONE CAN STOP
POE-ESCUDERO TANDEM ON GMA7
RUMOR: WILLIE LOSING A LOT IN SUNDAY
SHOW
SUSAN Roces is back before the camera playing Coco Martin’s
Lola in the TV remake of FPJ’s “Ang Probinsiyano”. When asked
about the possibility of her daughter Grace Poe running as president
in 2016, she says she doesn’t meddle with Grace’s political affairs.
“She’s old and wise enough to make her own decisions,” she adds.
More and more people are being receptive to Grace’s presidential bid, which is why she’s topping the surveys even if she has
not yet declared officially that she’s running. Obviously, the public
is sick and tired of the same old trapos and wants someone fresh
and untainted. No wonder people say Grace is the best legacy of
FPJ, who was unsuccessful in his presidential bid as he was blatantly
cheated by Gloria. Even Pres. PNoy recognizes this, which is why he
proposed that Grace go around the country to campaign with Mar
Roxas, as he can see Mar has very little chance of winning. It’s good
Grace is wise enough to refuse not to be used by the current administration.
From the start of her work as a public servant as the MTRCB
head, Grace has established herself as a principled, disciplined and
focused leader. Her MTRCB stint may be short but she’s one of the
best chairs it ever had. At the Senate, she showed so much intelligence and discretion in questioning people at the Senate hearings,
unlike other senators who are obviously just grandstanding with
their bombast and bullying.
We’ve met Grace in person several times and she strikes us
someone sincere and very level-headed. If she’d play her cards well,
she can bag the presidency even if they pose legal challenges against
her candidacy because people are just tired of the same old names
blemished by corruption. The fact that her opponents are now ganging up on her to destroy her is a sure indication that they’re panicking. Remember when they maligned her for being an “ampon” it
backfired on them since more people sympathized with Grace and
this only made her ratings go up further.
We heard she might formally declare her candidacy on her
late dad’s 76th birthday on August 20. She has very fond memories
of her dad: “My dad was the one who taught me by example what
unconditional love is. He was not one to talk much, but he always
showed me how to remain humble and magnanimous.
My
mom told me that my dad compassionate and generous to a fault
because he never forgot how it was to be poor. That’s why he was
genuine in his ways and his films were always about social justice
and uplifting the lives of those in need. I now want to prove that
FPJ, the person they ridiculed, was able to raise somebody like me,
who is continuing his legacy.”
If ever Sen. Grace would decided to aspire for the position that
was cheated away from her dad, may she have the guts and courage
to face all the demolition job that will surely come her way.
The loudest whisper is that she will run as president with Chiz
Escudero as vice president. She won’t confirm this yet but one things
is sure, though, GMA-7 will soon announce the start of a Poe-Escudero team up. That is, Lovi Poe and Heart Evangelista-Escudero
who will star together in their newest primetime show, “Beautiful
Strangers”.
SOMEONE told us Willie Revillame is losing a lot
of money by being a blocktimer of GMA7 for his
Sunday game show, “Wowowin”, unlike when he
was with TV5 where he’s the one being paid. For his
one hour show, he pays P2 million to GMA7 every
Sunday. He cannot recover that big an amount from
all the ads in his show, which was even cut short last
Sunday due to overtime.
Willie was hoping his show will be given a daily
shot but it’s not gonna happen simply because
“Wowowin” is not rating well. “Natatalo pa siya ng
full length movies na kasabay niya na mas mataas
ang rating,” says our source. “Una niyang dapat
gawin is to make his show faster paced kasi nakakabagot panoorin dahil kanta siya nang kanta. Doon
pa lang nauubos na ang oras niya tapos ang
bagal ng pacing ng games niya. Kaya hindi nakakatagal ang viewers at lumilipat agad ng channel
basta lumaylay na ang show niya.”
Last we heard, GMA has lowered the fee he’s
paying as a blocktimer. As of now, he’s only made
to pay P700,000 a week for his airtime. Here’s hoping he can make some profit from now on from his
show so he can sustain it.
ALDEN GETS NO DAY OFF
MR.Tony Tuviera’s APT Entertainment will be producing the new show that will replace “Sunday All Stars” on
GMA7. This is titled “Sunday Pinas Saya” and is going
to be a comedy-variety show hosted by Ai Ai de las
Alas and Marian Rivera, along with Alden Richards, Jose
Manalo and Wally Bayola.
Alden, Jose and Wally are now being seen from
Monday to Saturday in “Eat Bulaga”. With them also in
“Sunday Pinas Saya”, that means they’ll no longer have
a day off and will be seen every lunchtime all days of
the week.
We’re happy for Alden who has not had a regular
show since “Ilustrado” aired in December yet. At least, he
is assured of a good exposure in “Eat Bulaga” and “Sunday Pinas Saya”. In fairness to him, he’s good in comedy,
especially in his skits with Wally.
The new Sunday show will be the 4th show produced by APT for GMA7. They’re also producing “The
Ryzza Mae Show” and the upcoming daytime drama,
“The First Daughter” starring Ryzza, Aiza Seguerra and
Eula Valdez.
Jasmine shakes off
Derek’s big-brother
image to become his
lover
JASMINE Curtis-Smith is paired
with Derek Ramsay for the first time in
“Wattpad Presents Unwanted Girlfriend”.
“Nagkasama na kami before in the action
series, ‘Undercover’, but not as love interest,” she says. “This time, kami talaga ang
magkapareha.”
“He plays Mikael, a top photographer
who can’t get over the fact that he was
dumped by his girlfriend, si Stephanie,
played by Carla Humphries. I proposed
to him na gawin niya akong pretend girlfriend para he can forget his devastating
heartbreak with Carla. The story becomes
complicated when it’s discovered that I
have heart disease.
“Unwanted Girlfriend” is a special
episode to celebrate the 4th season of
“Wattpad Presents”. Instead of the
usual one week, it will run for two weeks.
“Mahaba kasi ‘yung book on which this
was based,” says TV5 entertainment
head Wilma Galvante. “We don’t want
to compress the story kasi more than 8.9
million ang readers nito. So mapapanood
nila ito ng buo for two weeks. We’re really
happy with ‘Wattpad Presents’ kasi marami
talagang sumusubaybay rito, even on other
platforms. May regular advertisers kami na
nagpapalagay pa ng product placements
within the show kasi marami talagang followers ang aming kilig mini-series.”
So how is it working with Derek in
“Unwanted Girlfriend”? “It’s always fun
to work with him kasi kahit pagod na
kayo, madaling araw na, pero mataas pa rin
ang energy niya, nagpapatawa pa rin siya.
Maganda agad ang naging rapport namin
kasi we’ve known each other for a long
time na, since nung bata pa ko, friends na
sila ng sister ko (Anne). That helped a lot
para maging comfortable kami sa isa’t isa.
Pero siyempre, noong una, medyo weird
kasi nga I consider him my Kuya, tapos
magkapareha na kami, but after a while, we
were laughing about it na. We really have
to thank our director, Ricky Rivero, for
helping us to nail our roles and the material the way he wants us to.”
What’s the reaction of her Ate Anne
about it? “When she called me, I was
in Tagaytay taping with Derek at nang
sabihin ko ito sa kanya, sigaw siya ng sigaw
‘What? With Derek? That’s so weird.’ Kasi
nga, napanood ko ‘yung movie nila with
him even showing his butt. So the biggest
challenge for me to overcome is ‘yung
lumaki akong big brother ang tingin ko sa
kanya. Tapos, baliw-baliwan ‘yung role ko,
tanga sa pag-ibig, so challenging talaga.
Pero sa tingin ko, naitawid naman namin.”
Jasmine is venturing into theatre. She
plays one of the four lead roles in the 9
Works-Sunbox production of “No Filter,
Let’s Talk About Me”, that starts playing
at RCBC Theatre in Makati on July 25.
“It’s a long monologue about the problems
that most young people today face, their 9
to 5 jobs, their relationships and the influence of social media today. I’m learning a
lot from the experience of acting on stage.”
So what about her lovelife after Sam
Concepcion? “I’m in love. With life, with
my career, with my family, with God.
They’re enough to inspire me.”
Talakayan in the City
Newly- posted Philippine Consul General-Toronto
Rosalita Prospero (seated centre) strikes a pose
with Talakayan Radyo Filipino AM 1430 co- producer May Cabrias ( right), co-anchor Karen Tan ( left),
political commentator Tony A.San Juan ( standing
left) and roving reporter Joe Damasco ( right),during
an interview break on July 18, 2015 at Fairchild
Radio Studio in Thornhill, Ontario. ConGen R.
Prospero discussed the Consulate’s drive for dual
citizenship , 2016 winter escapades and enhancing
consular & office services for Filipinos. Not shown
are: producer Jess Cabrias, Nelson Galvez, Bobby
Achacon and Karen Binaday.( Photo credit: Nelson
Galvez)
22
Darren Espanto,
Anthony and Candace
David and JayR pose
at the presscon for
the Darren Espanto
concert.
L. M. Confidential
AUGUST 2015
Hunk
Shot
‘PARI ‘KOY’
STRENGTHENS
DINGDONG’S
FAITH
DINGDONG Dantes is happy that
“Pari Koy” is extended until August 21.
“Bale more than 20 weeks din kami sa
ere,” he says.
The soap will be memorable for
him as some kids really think he is a
priest. “Kapag nakikita ako in public,
nagmamano sila sa kamay ko. Nakakahiya nga. But more than that, the
show really helped strengthen my faith
in God kaya this is one of my favorite
shows. We’ve featured so many inspiring stories in the course of the show
at marami kaming naging malalaking
guest stars. Even my wife (Marian Rivera), nanonood siya nito kasi nga very
inspiring ang stories.”
Will there be a possibility that
Marian will be a guest in the show
before it ends? “Actually, napag-usapan
na namin talaga ‘yan at okay naman
sa kanya to be a part of the show kasi
tapos na ‘yung delicate first trimester of
her pregnancy. But of course, it’ll still
depend on the condition of her pregnancy in the weeks to come.”
But Marian will be part of the new
show “Sunday Pinas Saya”? “Yes, but
she’ll just be a host. Every Sunday lang
naman ‘yon at hindi naman siya magsasayaw roon or sasali sa games. Siyempre, iniingatan niya ang baby namin.”
So how will he like “Pari Koy” to
end? Will he return to being a priest?
“Siyempre, pipiliin ni Fr. Kokoy kung
ano ang tama.”
Which is? “Love. Pag-ibig sa Diyos. Pero mahirap talaga ang sitwasyon
niya kasi may anak siya,si David Remo
John loves
sneakers and
he collects
them. He also
plays basketball
for fun, so
therefore, those
sneakers also get
used. That little
boy beside him
loves balloons.
John Kennedy
as Pinggoy. But we’ve consulted some
church authorities and according to
them, hindi naman kasalanan ni Fr.
Kokoy na may anak siya. It happened
naman noong hindi pa siya nagpapari.
So as of now, we don’t know yet what
will happen. We’re still looking into
some possibilities.”
MARTIN ON KYLIE:
SHE’S GENUINE
IT’S been a year since Martin del
Rosario left ABS-CBN and moved to
GMA7. He’s happy that after guesting
in such shows as “Rhodora X”, “Pari
Koy”, “Karelasyon”, “Magpakailanman”,
he now gets to play a regular lead role
in a soap. This is in “Buena Familia”
where he is the leading man of Kylie
Padilla. So how is it working with Kylie
who he has announced before as his
crush?
“She’s nice to work with,” he says.
“We quickly became comfortable with
each other kasi even before we started
taping, sabay kaming naging guests sa
lifestyle talk show na ‘Mars’ on GMA
News TV. Mula noon, every time I’m
asked who I would like to be paired
with, laging siya ang sinasabi ko. O
heto, ngayon, nagkatotoo na. I really
admire her, not only dahil maganda siya
kundi napakatotoo niya. The way she
talks, you can see she’s genuine. When
she opens up, you can see malalim
siyang kausap.”
So is he in love with her? “Siguro
hindi love agad. Admiration muna. Kasi
‘yung love, mas maganda kung kilala
n’yo nang mabuti ang isa’t isa. Basta sa
ngayon, start pa lang ng show, masaya
kami. We don’t feel awkward with each
other.”
DRS. SOLON C. GUZMAN & JOSEPHINE ADORNA-GUZMAN & ASSOCIATES
General · Cosmetic Dentistry · Oral Surgery · Dentures · Periodontics · Endodontics · Implants · Orthodontics
From Our Family to yours
OUR PROFESSIONAL TEAM
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Dr. Luis N. Queterio- Endodontist
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Hygienists
Dental Laboratory
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Michael Pendon
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Dundas Tower Medical Dental Centre & Laboratory
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Dr. Josephine Adorna Guzman DDS
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497 Laurier Avenue, Suite 5 Milton, Ontario L9T 3K8
905-864-8889
Email: [email protected]
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AUGUST 2015
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905-804-8000
Monday to Friday 9:00 AM - 8:00 PM
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Sundays & Holidays by Appointment
L. M. Confidential
23
Entertainment
Melissa Ricks is a
youtube star
and holds them captive in her bodega.
Kiray is a scene-stealer
KIRAY Celis plays the title role in
“Manananggurl”, this Saturday night’s
episode of TV5’s hit horror-comedy,
“ParangNormal Activity”. Kiray plays the
+ other news
leader of cheer leaders and mean girls in
their school who becomes the victim of a
manananggal, played by Regine Angeles.
Melissa Ricks, exactly a year ago last July,
She gets the shock of her life when, while
confirmed the rumors that she was preggy.
doing a cheer leading stunt, she’s thrown
She officially became a mom last January 12
into the air and her body separates into
when she gave birth to a cute baby girl she
two, with her upper half growing wings
and her boyfriend, Charles Togesaki, named
to make her a manananggurl.
Kiera Kelly. Now, she’s back in showbiz not
“Grabe, maski ako, natakot nang
only as an actress but as a Youtube star talkmakita
ko ang sarili ko sa screen,” she
ing about her life as a working mom in ABSsays.
“Pero
nakakatawa rin kasi kahit luCBN’s multi-channel network for the next
milipad
na
ako, hinahanap ko ‘yung lower
online stars, Chicken Pork Adobo Network.
half
ko.
Sabi
ko, ‘My hips! My hips!’
This empowers creators who do not
Nakakalowkah!”
have the chance to go on TV. The head is
Kiray stole the scene at the show’s
Donald Lim, head of ABS-CBN’s Digital
recent
presscon when she imitated the
Media Division. Chicken Pork Adobo has 90
Pabebe
Girls, doing their Pabebe talk.
creators now whose Youtube channels offer a
When
she
variety of topics: fashion, toys, comedy, music,
was asked if
lifestyle, blogs, entertainment, arts and crafts, food, parenting and inspirational. These
creators produce their own materials on a regular basis and even let their fans in into their she already
had a boyown private lives.
friend, she
Studies show that more and more Pinoys are consuming content online with an
replied in a
estimated 38 million internet users, most of whom are under 30 years old, and they are
Pabebe manlooking for different kinds of materials not usually found on free TV and cable channels.
Included in Chicken Pork Adobo is the big hit Kids’ Toys showing sisters Faye and Lau- ner.
“Sana
rice Tendilla as they open their toys. Launched in May 2012, it has since gathered 1.14
nga,
payamillion subscribers and had 1.5 billion views.
Other creators include Lloyd Cadena, who’s popular because of his own takes on love, gan na ako
ng Mama ko kasi 18 na ako. Pinu-push
school and his parody videos; “The Social Network” with three lawyers who share their
ko na talagang magka-BF na ako. Sabi
entertaining opinions, and actress Cai Cortez’ “Plump Pinay” that advocates one’s being
ko, payagan na niya kami ni Tom Taus.
comfortable with one’s own body, even if you’re fat.
Pinipilit ko nga si Direk Perci Intalan na
If you think you have something great to contribute, Chicken Pork Adobo wants
you to share your interesting and exciting materials with them so you can make your own i-guest si Tom sa show namin. Kasi mas
mark on digital space. You can get in touch with them through chickenporkadobo @abs- maganda kung may ka-love team ako.
Parang Pabebe po, ganun.”
cbn.com. They’re also on Facebook at chickenporkadobot.net.
Why does she choose Tom? “Kasi
po ang hot niya. At magkasing-height
Princess, Leni turns villains in ‘Yagit’
kami. At saka balikbayan siya, galing sa
States, so na-miss siya ng mga tao. E,
PRINCESS Punzalan is enjoying her role so much as the evil lawyer, Atty. Mili, in
kilala siya nung bata pa siya as Cedie, ang
“Yagit” that will end two weeks from now. “Tiyak na kaiinisan na naman ako ng viewmunting prinsipe, di ba?”
ers,” she says. “Tulad ng pagkainis nila sa akin when I did the
She’s grateful to ABS-CBN for
role of Selena in ‘Mula Sa Puso’. As Mili, tutulungan ko ang
lending her to TV5 to do “ParangNormal
sister kong si Alessandra de Rossi as Lulu para makidnap uli
Activity”. “Kasi wala naman po akong
si Chlaui Malayao as Elisa. Ito ang balak niyang gawin kapalit
show sa kanila. Actually, guest lang ako
ng nawala niyang anak. Nanakawin ko ang susi sa mansion
dapat dito sa ‘ParangNormal Activity’. E,
nina James Blanco as Victor, ang father ni Elisa, para makidnatuwa sa’kin si Direk Perci. Nakita niya
nap ang bata. Magkukunwa rin akong tutulungan sina James
kung gaano ako kagaling, so ginawa na
laban sa kaso nila kay Bettina Carlos as Izel na ninakaw ang
niya akong regular. Kaya thank you, Dilahat ng kayamanan ng pamilya nila, without him knowing
rek, kasi enjoy kami lahat ng mga kasama
na magkaibigan pala kami ni Bettina at lalo ko lang silang
ko ritong sina Ella Cruz, Shaun Salvador,
ipapahamak.”
Paulo Santiago at Andrei Garcia kaya
Aside from Princess and Alessandra, the other set of sister villains in the popular
sana magtagal nang matagal na matagal
afternoon drama series are LJ Reyes as Flora and her sister Leni Santos as Babylyn who
ang aming show.”
oppress Judie de la Cruz as Josie and her brother Jemwell Ventinilla as Tomtom. The two
kids manage to escape from their clutches, without knowing that they will only fall into
the hands of another evil character, Senyora Adelaida (Nova Villa), who locks them up
Max gets death threats
Guardians
and destination countries’ regulatory
frameworks for foreign workers,” it
added.
According to the report, forced labor
and trafficking domestically is also a
problem in the country, especially for
displaced communities in conflicted
areas in Mindanao. Also, domestic servitude, forced begging and labor, and
sex trafficking happen in cities such as
Manila, Cebu, Angeles City and other
urbanized areas in Mindanao, it said.
Traffickers partner with small local
networks to engage in recruitment
practices “that leave migrant workers
vulnerable to trafficking such as charging excessive fees and confiscating
identification documents.”
High demand for commercial sex
acts also proliferate in tourist destinations such as Boracay, Olongapo,
Puerto Galera and Surigao.
The TIP report also noted a United
Nations study that focus on the
continued recruitment and use of
children for combat and noncombat
roles by the Moro Islamic Liberation
Front, New People’s Army, Abu Sayyaf
Group, and the Bangsamoro Islamic
Freedom Fighters.
Child sex trafficking “remains a serious problem,” the report added.
It said public officials, including diplomats abroad and other law enforcement agencies, are allegedly “complicit”
in trafficking operations in the country.
“Reports assert some corrupt officials accept payments or sexual services
from establishments notorious for
trafficking, accept bribes to facilitate
illegal departures for overseas workers,
downgrade trafficking charges, or overlook unscrupulous labor recruiters.”
“The report urged the [Philippines]
to increase its efforts to hold government officials administratively and
criminally accountable for trafficking and trafficking-related offenses
through criminal prosecutions, convictions, and stringent sentences,” the
embassy said.
It also recommends “expanding the
continuous trial mechanism to increase
the speed of trafficking prosecutions, developing and implementing
programs to reduce the demand for
commercial sex acts, and increasing
the availability of shelter and protection resources for trafficking victims,
particularly males.”
“As part of our global efforts to
combat human trafficking, the US
government is committed to working
with the [Philippines] and its people
to prevent trafficking activities in the
Philippines, to prosecute perpetrators,
and to protect victims.”
Brotherhood
The Origin of Guardians Brotherhood was
Diablo Squad Crime Buster, was founded and
organized in 1976, it was originally composed
of eleven members. The diablo squad members are dauntless and ingenious advocators
for the defense of the Filipino banner liberty
and oneness, mga matatapang at matapat
na tagapatanggol ng watawat, kalayaan at
pagkakaisa.
Sometime in the middle of 1984 the
higher command of AFP had successfully
manipulated and disbanded the said organization. In the later 1984 members formed and
organized Guardians brotherhood incorporated, replacing the defunct diablo squad
crime buster.
GUARDIANS is an acronym of Gentlemen United Associates of Race Dauntless
Ingenious Advocators of Nation and Society.
On April 2013 Philippine Canadian Guardians
Brotherhood Incorporated established in Manitoba
Winnipeg With the leadership of Dennis Castaneda
as National Chairman of Canada. February 1, 2014,
24
HUMAN TRAFFICKING
continued from page 1
PCGBI Toronto was founded under the umbrella of
PCGBI Manitoba and it was duly registered in Ontario on the said date. Rey Paul Bantique is the current
Toronto Chapter Chairman. And on their first year
they already established their organization by doing
some outreach, voluntarily helping events on Filipino
community, like the well known Taste of Manila street
Festival held last August 2014 in Bathurst Toronto.
Last July 18, 2015 they had Dinner Dance party and
was attended by members family and friends not more
L. M. Confidential
than 200 people at Dosan Hall Gallery in Bridgeland
Ave Toronto, It was a night full of fun, games and
authentic Filipino food which members of the said
organization prepared for their visitors. (Shiela Calica
PPCO member)
AUGUST 2015
ADVOCATES
continued from page 20
children. They may travel with the fiancé
as derivatives.
Unlike spousal petitions where the
US citizen and his spouse must have
been married before the child turns 18
to qualify as a minor stepchild of the US
citizen and a separate petition must be
filed for each child.
There are also certain protections
afforded to fiancés. If the US citizen has
prior arrests or convictions, especially for
violence or sexual offenses, the United
States Citizenship and Immigration
Services (USCIS) or Department of State
consuls will disclose this information to
the fiancé/fiancée.
Furthermore, a US citizen with a
conviction(s) relating to sexual offense
against a minor is prohibited from
petitioning for a fiancé/fiancée unless the
US citizen can prove to the USCIS that
he/she poses no risk to the fiancé/fiancée.
The surprisingly high number of fiancé
visas for the Philippines is a testament
to the commonality of distant overseas
relationships as well as the slow US
immigration process for family petitions.
Hopefully, most of the fiancé visa holders
are now married to their US citizen
spouses and living their dreams.
For those who were not fortunate to
marry their US citizen fiancés, there are
still forms of relief that they may avail
of especially if they have been victims of
domestic violence.
With the uptick in the number of fiancé
visas issued for Filipinos, it is important
to increase awareness of spousal rights and
domestic violence issues for noncitizens.
Spotlight
An old billboard advertisement for Tru-Orange drink. Manila, 1940-1950s
Crossword Puzzle
Darren Espanto Concert
DEFENSE SPENDING
from page 3
444 billion pesos for the second five years
and 471 billion pesos for the last five years.
In 1995, Congress had earmarked 364
billion pesos for a similar 15-year plan. Less
than one-tenth of that sum was actually
spent by 2010.
The modernization program is designed
to strengthen Manila’s claims in the South
China Sea, believed to be rich in energy
deposits. China has become increasingly
assertive in the South China Sea, building
artificial islands in areas over which the
Philippines and other countries have rival
claims. The moves have sparked alarm
regionally and in Washington.
President Benigno Aquino has promised
the military about 34 billion pesos this year,
which will fund the purchase of two frigates
and a twin-engine long range maritime
aircraft. So far, the government has given the
military 9.4 billion pesos in 2014. This has
been used to purchase eight combat utility
helicopters and as a downpayment for 12
FA-50 fighter-trainers from South Korea.
Two of the aircraft are expected in 2016.
Del Rosario said that between 2018 and
2023 the Philippines would buy electricdiesel submarines and advanced missile
systems. Three aerial surveillance radars with
a range of 350 nautical miles will also be
installed in Ilocos Norte, Lubang island and
Mount Salacot in Palawan, all facing the
South China Sea to detect movements in
the disputed area.
These will complement the navy’s two
surface sensors capable of detecting ship
activities 200 miles away. Three surveillance
planes will also be on constant patrol in the
area.
“We do not aim to defeat China,” del
Rosario said. “But our goal is make any state
think twice before attacking. We will make
sure anybody attacking us would end up
with a bloodied nose.”
AUGUST 2015
Producer Belinda Reyes poses with Darren Espanto and JayR.
Answers on
Page 26
L. M. Confidential
25
Life Hacks
Barbie gets stubborn on bday
+ other news
Barbie Forteza turned 18 July 31. But
instead of having a grand debut like other
showbiz debutantes, she chooses to do
something more worthwhile.
“Kinukulit talaga ako ng GMA Artist
Center na mag-debut pero ayoko talaga
dahil hindi ko type magsuot ng gown
and mag-high heels,” she says. “Instead
of spending so much for a grand debut
na one night lang mangyayari, I’m using
the money for a more meaningful thing.
I’ve been celebrating my birthday for the
past four years with the patients of the
Philippine Children’s Medical Center in
Quezon City. Now, I’m adopting a private
room there for renovation later to be
converted to a special room. The proceeds
from the use of room later will then go to
the charity wards.”
Barbie is the first actress to
participate in this worthy cause of “adopt
a room”.
Another memorable birthday gift for
her is the extension of “The Half Sisters”.
“And then, she is also very happy to be
part of “Sunday Pinas Saya”, which will
replace “Sunday All Stars” starting August
9 on GMA7, 12 noon to 2 p.m. She’ll be
the leader of the Pabibo Girls. To top it
all, she has bought a house for her family
in New Intramuros Village, QC. They
used to live in a condo which they’re now
renting out to someone else. “We have to
get a bigger place kasi lumaki na po ako at
dumami na ang mga gamit ko,” she adds.
“Next dream ko is to buy my own car, a
pick up truck sana. May driver’s license
na ako at sana pumayag na ang parents ko
for me to drive my own car.”
‘Gay’ Mike has a GF of 9 years
Mike Tan is the Ultimate Male
Survivor of Starstruck 2 exactly 10 years
Candid
ago. Many writers are wondering why
his career has not really soared higher
when he’s got what it takes to be a
bigger star. He has the advantage of
height, he’s hunky (as shown in his
Boardwalk underwear pictorials) and
he can also act well.
“Ako rin, I’m wondering about
it,” he says. “Sabi ng iba, dapat daw
gumimik ako. But will it be worth
it? Kasi I believe that if you just do
your work well, always do your best,
mapapansin ka rin and your time
will come. Right now, I’m so happy
kasi sobrang ganda ng feedback sa
performance ko as Paul Tanchingco,
the closet gay brother of Jade in ‘The
Rich Man’s Daughter’ that will end in two
weeks. When people see me sa church,
o sa mall, kilala nila ako as Paul. May
nagsasabi pa, lalaki ka pala, akala namin
bading ka talaga. Pati sa Twitter, natatawa
ako ’pag may nababasa akong ‘nagdududa
na ko kay Mike Tan, bading yata talaga’.
So it means effective ang acting ko.”
What if he gets typecast in gay roles?
“Kaya nga sa next show ko, I wish lalaki
naman ang role ko. I’m supposed to
audition for a new show. Sana, makuha
ako, kasi ibang-ibang Mike Tan naman
ang makikita sa akin doon. I’m also
doing a movie now na lalaki ang role
ko, ‘No Boyfriend Since Birth’ for Regal
Entertainment.
Mike has a non-showbiz girlfriend
and they’ve been on for nine years. It’s
good she’s not hinting for them to tie
the knot soon? “Alam niya marami pa
akong gustong mapatunayan at marating
sa career ko. Gusto ko makagawa ng
significant indie films na masasali sa
international filmfests and she’s very
supportive. Siya rin naman, marami pa rin
siyang career goals so settling down is not
part of our immediate plans.”
Gelli revelas happy life with
Ariel
Gelli De Belen is one of the busiest
Kapatid stars. She’s currently hosting
“Happy Truck ng Bayan” on Sundays, a
judge in “KisPinoy” on Saturdays and is
now doing the new sitcom “Misterless
Misis” with Lorna Tolentino, Mitch
Valdez, Ritz Azul, newcomer Andie
Gomez and Ruffa Gutierrez. For five
weeks now, she is also substituting for
Mariel Rodriguez as co-host of “Happy
SPOOF
(Pop-ups are not
supposed to be
taken seriously EDITOR)
Wife, Happy Life”. Another upcoming
show is “SM Little Stars” where she’ll
be a judge and mentor to the kiddie
contestants.
She’s one actress whose career and
family life are really both doing well.
She’s been married to Ariel Rivera for
18 years now and they have two sons,
Joaqui, 16 years old, and Julio, 14 years
old. They never had a yaya for their sons.
“Palitan kami noon sa pag-aalaga sa mga
bata. But now that they’re teenagers, they
need less supervision. When I’m working,
tumatawag na lang ako sa bahay to make
sure nakakain na sila when they get home
from school at ginagawa ang home work
nila.”
What’s the secret of her longlasting marriage to Ariel? “Suwerte ako
kasi he’s a very good partner. Whatever
I do na gawaing bahay, ginagawa rin
niya. Siguro kasi he grew up in Canada
at wala namang maids doon kaya sanay
siya. Even sa career ko, he’s always been
very supportive and we’ve learned to
adjust to each other. We also keep our
communication lines open.”
We tell her she’s the most active
in her batch of stars who started in the
90s as teenstars, which includes Ruffa
Gutierrez, Carmina Villarroel, Vina
Morales and Aiko Melendez. They’re
now in their 40s and they’re the ones who
followed the batch of Sharon Cuneta and
Maricel Soriano who are now in their 50s.
“Nakakatuwa nga kasi lahat kami,
active pa rin,” she says.”Heto ngayon,
kami ni Ruffa, co-stars in ‘Misterless
Misis’ at magkasama kami ng tent.
Grabe ang saya-saya, hindi matapos ang
kuwentuhan.”
One thing Gelli misses is doing
movies. In her batch, she’s the only who
has an Urian best actress award for “Sarah
Jane Salazar Story” in 1994. “Nami-miss
ko talaga gumawa ng pelikula. Buti nga
ang sister kong si Janice, dala-dalawang
movies ang ginagawa ngayon. I really
want to try doing an indie film na serious
naman ang role ko.”
Crossword Answers
US LOCATIONS
continued from page 4
that shipment volume has already expanded by 160% year-on-year as of June
2015.
About 99% of the facility’s 400
employees are Filipino, including a
100-member Filipino research and
development (R&D) team in Batangas to
complement its 130-member R&D team
in Tokyo, Japan.
“One of the biggest considerations for
investing in the Philippines is the people.
Moving our production here allows to
produce these machines more efficiently,”
Usui said.
The country’s young and educated
demographic was a particular consideration as it is easier to hire good talent
compared to Japan, Usui said, adding that
Filipinos’ proficiency in English was also
a big factor.
Geography also played a part as Aruze’s
major market is in Asia and the Philippines is within 4 hours reach or less from
most of the cities it delivers to, he said.
Growing market
With the decline of gambling revenues in Macau and Las Vegas, and the
increasing shift to a more family-oriented
destination, Usui sees a chance for the
Philippines to become a shining light in
the gaming industry.
“The Philippines is an ideal place for
integrated casino resorts as it’s close to
major cities in China, Korea, and Japan.
In fact, the Philippine Amusement
and Gaming Corporation (PAGCOR)
announced a 20% increase in gaming
revenue this year,” he said.
Another advantage, Usui said, is that
the country can offer something completely different from established locations like Macau and Las Vegas.
“The country offers more choices for
players. If they have time to leave Manila,
they can enjoy a lot of beautiful beaches
that other casino districts simply cannot
offer,” he said.
Easy to play
The rise of casino resorts in Manila
bodes well for Aruze. Usui said that slot
machines will continue to play a pivotal
role in this regard.
Ironically, in an industry glamorized for
its high stakes nature, it is the game with
the lowest stakes that is arguably its most
defining feature.
“The biggest reason for its popularity is the low barriers to play. You can
spend only P10 ($0.22) on a slot machine, whereas games like blackjack often
have minimum bets that run up to P200
($4.4),” he said.
Slot machines are also the simplest and
easiest games available to players.
“With a slot machine, you don’t have
the stress of competing with others or
constantly calculating odds. You can
simply play the machine and hope to get
lucky,” he said.
Hey, why are we not moving yet? Ohio
is far. I hope these people know that.
For Sale
Medical Bed $ 300
or best offer
Call
Activists held protest near Chicago hotel where Pres. Aquino had checked in.
26
L. M. Confidential
416-945-2336
AUGUST 2015
1
2
ABOVE, Conida Marie
Halley (2ND FROM
LEFT) was crowned
Miss Philippines PIDC
2015. Rafael Nebres
(LEFT) of Action Honda
was one of the judges.
Gianna Matizen 2nd
Birthday
3
Maja Moves On
MAJA Salvador feels so blessed in playing
the role of Mia, the woman torn between
long lost brothers Carlos (Paulo Avelino)
and Gael ( Jericho Rosales) in “Bridges of
Love” that’s on its last three weeks. “I’m
glad that after playing the role of a mistress
in ‘Legal Wife’, ang solo lead role na ito
ang sumunod kong project,” she says. “I really enjoyed doing my role as Mia kasi very
challenging siya, physically and emotionally. Ang maganda kay Mia, she made some
mistakes but learned a lot from all of them.”
What’s the most intense and demanding scene she has done so far in
the show? “Pinakamahirap sa akin ‘yung
umawat at gumitna kapag nag-aaway silang
dalawa. Mahirap pigilan ‘yung mga emosyon, madadala ka.”
So who would she choose when
the series ends: Gael or Carlos? “Sa totoo
lang, hindi pa namin alam. Nagte-taping
pa kami kaya wala pa sa point na ‘yun ang
script na ibinibigay sa amin. As of now,
after makansela ang wedding namin ni
Carlos dahil sa pagkamatay ni Janus del
Prado as Muloy, marami pang mga lihim
na isa-isang mabubunyag. Naibunyag na
ni Carlos kay Gael na ito ang kanyang
nawawalang kapatid. Abangan.”
Maja wants to thank all the show’s
regular viewers who have supported them
since the show started airing in March of
this year. “Talagang hindi sila bumitaw kaya
laging 25% and above ang ratings namin.
Hindi rin matatawaran ang suporta ng
co-stars namin: Edu Manzano as Lorenzo,
Carmina Villarroel as Alexa and Maureen
Mauricio as Tita Marilen. At siyempre, our
directors, Richard Somes and Will Fredo.”
So how is her love life after the
breakup with Gerald Anderson? “I’ve
moved on. Hindi ako ‘yung tipo who’d
dwell on such things. The key is acceptance,
1. Gianna poses with mom and dad Gladys and Junray
2. Gianna poses for the camera.
3. Giann poses with dad, lolo/Dr. Calderon and lola Zeny.
tanggapin mo lang, then move on na agad.
Right now, in love ako with my work. Kasi
after ‘Bridges’, there’s another big project
waiting for me, pero hindi ko pa puwedeng
i-announce. Saka na lang.”
First Collaboration
‘BRIDGES of Love’ is the first collaboration between directors Richard
Somes and Will Fredo, who are both
award-winning indie film directors. This is
actually Will’s first teleserye after directing
acclaimed indie flicks like “Compound” and
“In Nomine Matris”. “Kabadong-kabado
ako when we started kasi first time ko sa
ABS,” he says. “But I’m so happy na very
welcoming si Direk Richard at ang buong
cast. Direk Richard served as my mentor
at talagang tumaas ang respeto ko sa kanya
after working with him.”
“It’s our first time to work together
ni Will,” says Richard who won awards
for the film “Yanggaw”. “In doing a TV
series, may templates kang susundan at
buti na lang nag-blend agad ang templates
naming dalawa. We discuss what we’ll tape
and in one sitting lang, we can settle how
we’ll treat each scene. Naging magaan ang
trabaho namin.”
So what do we expect in the show
during its last three weeks? “Marami pa,”
says Richard. “You can expect the culmination of the entire story after we’ve set it up
and the characters became endearing to the
viewers. They will come into full circle pero
marami pang mangyayari na gugulat na
revelations sa inyo so don’t miss it.”
For exclusive updates, log on to Twitter.com/StarCreativesTV and Instagram.
com/StarCreatives. You may also catch
up on full episodes and past episodes of
“Bridges of Love” through ABS CBNmobile. For more information, please go to
www.abscbnmobile.com.
Filipino Bakery
and
Asian Cuisine
www.fvfoods.com
AUGUST 2015
L. M. Confidential
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L. M. Confidential
AUGUST 2015